Apple’s application approvals process is in the spotlight again, after it was reported that the company has barred all apps designed to provide access to a single radio station. According to DJB Radio Apps, a company which has delivered products for a number of customers, the company now believes that these apps “represent spam in the iTunes store,” and it will only approve software that aggregates multiple stations. While the move is designed to stop developers from offering a large range of similar products via the store, the distinct radio apps are all designed to provide access to different content, from different providers, often with a different target audience.

DJB Radio Apps notes that in creating an app, a radio station would not want to be forced to promote its direct competitors – the intention is to engage directly with the potential audience, and not to promote rivals. “There are more than 900 Flashlight apps. More than 3,000 apps that do maps. But radio stations cannot have their own. Android Market and Blackberry World both like radio station apps for their platforms; but iTunes for some reason will not budge on what it calls spam applications,” the company notes.

Apple’s apps approval process had widely been criticised for being opaque, leading it to publish its guidelines in order to make it easier for developers to create products that would be green-lit. However, it retains the final say on what is allowed and what is not, remaining inflexible to this end.