Spotify music subscription app gets approved by Apple

An application that lets subscription users stream and download music playlists for offline listening has been approved for the iPhone. The service, Spotify, is available from the App Store in 6 countries, not including the U.S., reports paidContent.

The approval comes as somewhat a surprise since it seems that the application potentially threatens one of Apple's core businesses: selling music. Spotify provides users in some countries, though notably not in the U.S., the opportunity to purchase songs from download partners. It is not known if the iPhone application allows users to do the same. It is possible that Apple feels no threat from Spotify due to the current requirement for a monthly subscription to use the service, or perhaps Apple feels pressure from regulators to play fair in the wake of the Google Voice scandal.

Spotify is available in Sweden, Norway, Finland, U.K., France, and Spain. The application will need to be approved by Apple in the U.S. later this year, when Spotify plans to launch its service here. Spotify costs 9.99 GBP per month and the iPhone application is free to download. [via EngadgetMobile]