March 9 - 4:10pm EDT   NiceMac has announced that since its StarPlayr Sirius radio app has failed to receive approval at Apple's App Store, it will be scrapping the entire StarPlayr project. Back in January, NiceMac submitted the iPhone app for approval and waited roughly a month before receiving a statement that they could not be approved at the time. Gizmodo notes that a potential factor blocking the app from being approved could be that a first-party app from Sirius may be in development, though it remains unconfirmed. [full story]

February 20 - 4:55pm EST   A recent ad deployed through the United Kingdom's Absolute Radio -- formerly known as Virgin Radio -- has generated some controversy, writes The Guardian. The ad promotes the new U2 single "Get On Your Boots," urging listeners to buy it through iTunes. The spot is only 10 seconds long though, and required approval from the UK's Ofcom regulatory body due to worries about issues such as subliminal advertising. [full story]

January 27 - 10:25am EST   Pass Time Software has updated its NPR Mobile app for the iPhone and iPod touch to v1.2. The app provides users with a browsing interface, enabling them to find and listen to radio programs, read summary text, and view any available images. In the newest version, users can expect added access to browsing and listening of all of NPR’s podcasts, and changes to search capabilities that allow finding NPR affiliates using cities, states and zip codes, or GPS in the case of the iPhone. [full story]

January 26 - 4:45pm EST   Even if you're a regular National Public Radio (NPR) listener, there's a chance you won't catch your favorite shows during the day. Many NPR stations offer podcasts, but if you're not keen on manually hunting for files and loading them onto a media player, you can let a program like the NPR Mobile iPhone app do the work for you. [full story]

November 11 - 10:10am EST   An update to an Internet radio app for the iPhone and iPod touch has been denied, despite the acceptance of earlier versions, its developer notes. return7 observes that CastCatcher 1.3 has been denied permission for posting at the App Store, even though three previous versions of the app were accepted and the most recent one, v1.2, is still on sale. A message from Apple is claimed to say that v1.3 transfers "excessive volumes of data over the cellular network," which is forbidden under Section 3.3.15 of the iPhone SDK. [full story]

October 21 - 12:05am EDT   MySimBook on Monday unveiled Radiolicious, a new iPhone and iPod touch application that allows users to tap into their favorite local radio stations, while allowing broadcasters to potentially advertise to millions around the globe. The entire software setup is free to use for both radio stations and users, with MySimBook paying any costs involved, save for a small service fee for the station to be part of the advertising network. [full story]

October 10 - 3:50pm EDT   Online music broadcaster BreakThru Radio has announced the availability of its radio streams to iPhone and iPod touch users. The service relies on technology from TVersity to deliver the channels, but listeners are able to tune in by navigating to iphone.breakthrough.com in Safari. Genres cater to more independent tastes, and include death metal, dancehall, dubstep, hip-hop, indie rock, skronk, roots country, reggae, electronic, acid jazz, ambient, dub, two-step, folk and more. [full story]

September 28 - 8:55pm EDT   Last.fm Ltd. has updated Last.fm for iPhone to v2.0, streamlining the interface, adding tagging, personal tag radio, common artists (when viewing a profile) and a calendar-based events view. The new update also adds support for the iPhone 2.1 software update. The software allows users to design personal radio stations based on artists or genres, and offers artists bios, concert information, favorite track sharing and smart recommendations, based on user listening. [full story]

September 24 - 10:00am EDT   The UK's official broadcaster, the BBC, has announced expanded support for the iPhone/iPod touch version of its iPlayer service. As of today the software now supports radio, allowing users to listen to episodes from a variety of programs up to seven days after the original airdate. The BBC's Mark Friend says that the option comes from adapting the network's normal digital delivery to suit the unique restrictions of Apple handhelds. [full story]

September 11 - 1:10pm EDT   FlyCast, formerly known as FlyTunes, has released the first native version of its self-named radio application for iPhones and iPod touches. By default the app lists and streams more than a thousand radio stations, divided between formats such as music, talk and information. Listeners can also access any Internet-only stream listed through Shoutcast, of which there are said to be over 25,000. [full story]

August 14 - 12:25pm EDT   UK audio company Revo has announced the Pico RadioStation, a new DAB radio tuner. Aside from DAB and FM radio broadcasts, the Pico is also designed to stream computer and Internet content through a LAN connection. Particularly important may be compatibility with DAB+, an improved radio standard with error correction and support for AAC+ compression. The Pico is said to be one of the first portable tuners with the technology, although it is nearly 6.6 inches tall. [full story]

August 13 - 12:05pm EDT   Premiere Radio Networks has announced that this weekend, a new, three-hour music countdown show backed by Apple will launch, titled The iTunes Download (link not yet functional). The show will be hosted by iTunes' Director of Music Programming, Alex Luke, and be broadcast from Los Angeles to a number of Top 40-format radio stations. The show will air weekly on Saturday or Sunday, and will feature the 30 most downloaded songs in America, as well as interviews with highlighted artists. Luke will also draw attention to celebrity playlists, and iMixes, the playlists shoppers create in the iTunes Store. [full story]

August 13 - 11:35am EDT   A Sirius XM application is in production for the iPhone, according to reports. The app is said to be in development by GeeksToolBox as part of the StreamSmart project, which aims to allow the streaming of Sirius, XM and Internet radio to multiple platforms including the iPhone. The name of the app, StarPlayr, may indicate that a partnership with NiceMac, as StarPlayr is the name NiceMac uses for its Mac OS X software of similar function. The Sirius XM app is allegedly still in an alpha stage, meaning it remains under heavy development and that a number of leaked details could change. [full story]

July 31 - 1:40pm EDT   Apple may be looking to build or support new add-ons capable of streaming radio and/or TV to its handhelds, a new patent application suggests. The device would attach directly to a handheld such as an iPhone or iPod, and pick up signals from one or more formats including AM, FM, HD or satellite radio, or TV standards such as cable, satellite, over-the-air or IPTV. More conventional reception means could include Wi-Fi, cellular or Ethernet. [full story]

May 13 - 4:50pm EDT   Emmis Communications has announced a new affiliate deal signed with Apple, under which its Interactive division's Storefront technology will be tied to the iTunes Store, and in turn sold to other companies. Storefront lets radio stations -- mainly those owned by Emmis -- create custom online shops, particularly for the purpose of selling tracks as they are played live on air. The company claims that many alternatives only direct listeners to separate sites, instead of letting them pull music straight into local software. [full story]