Insists app has not been rejected

Apple has already issued a response to today's release of an uncensored Google submission to the FCC, according to Silicon Alley Insider. "We do not agree with all of the statements made by Google in their FCC letter," reads a statement from an Apple representative. Reiterating an earlier point of view, the representative adds that "Apple has not rejected the Google Voice application and we continue to discuss it with Google."

The FCC has been probing allegations that Google Voice was rejected from the App Store due to pressure on Apple from AT&T. The carrier may have felt threatened, some suggest, by the prospect of people using Voice to make cheaper calls outside of AT&T minutes. While Google supports the notion that AT&T was not involved, it does insist that Apple has formally rejected the app.

"Apple's representatives informed Google that the Google Voice application was rejected because Apple believed the application duplicated the core dialer functionality of the iPhone," reads Google's response to the FCC. "The Apple representatives indicated that the company did not want applications that could potentially replace such functionality."

Should the Google statement be true, it may also highlight a double-standard. A number of VoIP apps are present at the App Store, including Skype and Truphone. These directly substitute for the iPhone dialer, though users can only make calls via Wi-Fi, rather than GSM, EDGE or 3G.

by MacNN Staff