Google has released a brand-new YouTube app for iOS 6 just one day before Apple is due to launch the latest iPhone. Although the move seems like a step backwards for the Mountain View company, as previous iPhones came pre-loaded with YouTube, it's actually a step forward, as it means that subscribers will be able to monetize views from the lucrative mobile market, which brings in a quarter of YouTube's daily 1 billion hits.
YouTube's pre-installed absence from iOS 6 is old news, as is that of its sister system, Google Maps. Apple is replacing this with its own navigating tools, which uses data from Netherlands-based firm TomTom, among others. Google, however, is not taking the loss lying down and, in a recent interview by the BBC, Maps chief Brian McClendon hinted that there was no reason why the search giant would not create a separate Maps app for iOS 6 devices.
The downside is, of course, that users of iOS 6 will have to remember to download the YouTube app onto their cellphones, but the app means that more of its videos will be available to watch--and subscribers may find their pockets a little fuller.
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