Report: Apple’s iNet Radio Service Delayed

Apple’s efforts to create an Internet radio service to compete with Pandora has been delayed by licensing negotiations with music companies, according to a number of people briefed on the talks.

Ben Sisario at nytimes.com writes Apple had hoped to introduce the service early this year, but now it is not likely to reach the market until the summer, if not later, according to these people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks were confidential.

Apple has never announced the service — quickly nicknamed iRadio by analysts and technology journalists — but its intentions have slowly been leaking out since last fall. According to music executives then and now, Apple wants to preload an app on its mobile devices that can deliver a free stream of songs tailored to each user’s taste and supported through its iAds advertising platform.

Such an app would have a vast potential audience. It would also pose a threat to Pandora, which dominates the Internet radio field with more than 65 million regular users and, according to Apple’s charts, is its second-most popular free app of all time. (No. 1 is Facebook.)

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