SAN FRANCISCO - The Financial Accounting Standards Board approved a rule change on Wednesday that is set to benefit some technology companies by allowing them to recognize more revenue when certain products are sold.

The rule change, which analysts expect to help companies like Apple Inc and Palm Inc, was approved by a 5-0 vote.

The change relates to the way revenue is recognized for products that combine hardware and software elements.

Under the old accounting rules, Apple booked sales of its popular iPhone over two years, so the company's revenue and profit in a given quarter didn't reflect the full value of sales of the device.

The same accounting treatment was used for Apple TV.

Analysts expect the rule change to allow Apple to recognize the majority of revenue from iPhone and Apple TV. (Reporting by Gabriel Madway, editing by Leslie Gevirtz)

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