It was fun while it lasted. I had wondered how Grooveshark could charge just $3 a month for unlimited on-demand music streams to your iPhone while other companies charge more than three times as much.
Turns out, it can't.
Earlier this month, the Grooveshark iPhone app appeared in Apple's App Store. On Monday, Apple pulled the app. According to Grooveshark's blog, Apple received a complaint from Universal Music Group UK.
This isn't exactly a surprise, given that Universal Music filed a lawsuit against the upstart subscription music service earlier this year. In a statement, Apple confirmed that the conflict between Grooveshark and rights holders was indeed the reason for pulling the app: "As an IP holder ourselves, we understand the importance of protecting intellectual property. Due to objections by rights holders, the GrooveShark App has been removed until a resolution is reached between the parties."
If you were quick enough to download the app and start your 30-day trial, it does still appear to be working.
Also, I was informed that the absence of Pink Floyd songs from Grooveshark doesn't have anything to do with the service but is part of a larger renegotiation between that band and label EMI over digital rights--apparently, the Floyd has pulled some of its songs from other services as well.
Updated 11:30 a.m. PDT: Added comments from Apple.