In what apparently is an indication of the intensifying smartphone-market scuffle between two bigwig tech markets rivals, Apple and Google, the lineup of the pre-loaded apps on Apple's devices, running the company's forthcoming iOS 6 version, does not include Google's popular video-sharing service YouTube.

That the Apple-YouTube relationship has seemingly ended is evident from the fact that YouTube was the most prominent `miss' in the lineup of default apps on future devices from Apple, when the company released the test version of its next-generation operating system - the upcoming iOS 6 version - for its iPhone and iPad on Monday.

About Apple's elimination of Google's YouTube as a pre-loaded app on its mobile devices, Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller said that the move is a consequence of the fact that the company's license for the inclusion of the YouTube app in iOS has come to an end.

As such, Muller added, that the YouTube app will no longer be one of the pre-installed apps on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch versions which Apple will release in the future, and even on the existing devices if the users download the iOS 6 version.

Noting that YouTube will no longer be a standard app on the iPhone and iPad, Muller also said: "Customers can use YouTube in the Safari browser, and Google is working on a new YouTube app to be on the App Store."