Apple Bans ‘iTunes Radio Competitor’ Bloom.fm
Apple has banned UK based streaming music startup Bloom.fm from advertising to attract new users on Apple's iAd network. The ban reportedly came because the tech giant sees Bloom.fm, as "a competitive service to iTunes Radio and it is against Apple policy".
Bloom.fm, which offer both free rasio-like listening and paid subscriptions, hit 500,000 users last October. Bloom attracts a young demographic – 54% of the app’s users are under 25, with (83%) under 35.
"They stopped us advertising a few weeks ago and we were unclear why. Then we received an email from our marketing agency saying that it was against their policy to advertise competing services," Bloom.fm's marketing director Jon Clark told The Guardian. "We're amused by this rather than frustrated. It's just pretty funny really. We're a tiny app, so we're surprised they even noticed what we were doing."
