Lazyworm removing MetroTube and YouTube from Marketplace

Lazyworm apps have announced that they will be removing their Windows Phone YouTube apps from marketplace on the 1st January.

They write:

I’m absolutely gutted to be announcing this however our YouTube apps will no longer be available for download from the Windows Phone Marketplace as of the 1st of January 2012.  The apps should remain functional for those who have already installed them however we won’t be able to push out any further updates.

In their letter explaining the reasons they say:YouTube’s current API does not have any documented methods for obtaining high quality video content. We have been using a workaround to obtain this content and it has recently come to our attention that this may not be sustainable in the long term, hence our decision to stop distributing the apps.

I suspect whatever work-around they have been using resulted in a cease and desist from Google when the volume of use became significant.

The app will continue to work for current users, but no further updates will be forthcoming.

This is however not the last we will hear of Lazyworm apps. They conclude saying “We have a few exciting projects in the pipeline that we think people will love so we urge everyone to continue following our progress and showing us their support!”

If this problem is indeed due to Google action it would be particularly galling, given that the company has not provided a native YouTube app for Windows Phone and has, according to reports, frustrated efforts by Microsoft to improve their app.

See Lazyworm’s announcement here.