The official Google, AT&T and Apple responds to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are available. The government officials got interested in why iPhone applications catalogue lacks Google Voice, free IT software.

Google Voice is a telecommunications service allowing using a single number forwarding all the user’s phones, free SMS and international and long-distant calls with cheap rates. VoIP lets Google Voice users pay not for calling services but for cheaper data exchange.

At the end of July 2009 Apple withdrew all the Google Voice’s links and references from the Apple Store and from the internet catalogue of iPhone applications.

Gawker claims that the FCC representatives and journalists got suspicious that AT&T might have forced Apple to arrive at this decision. Having signed a two-year contract with AT&T, clients get a free iPhone from the corporation. In case clients cut down their spending, the income of the provider will be decreased.

AT&T , however, refused to admit the fact that it has something to do with the choice of applications for the Apple Store and with Google Voice’s misfortune as well. While at the same time the company recognized that it had had discussions with Apple on the effect some applications might have on AT&T’s telecommunication capacity.

According to a special agreement, Apple is forbidden to make any VoIP-based software working over 2G and 3G nets provided by AT&T without permission of the latter. Earlier AT&T and Apple succeeded in reducing Skype’s options in iPhones. So, at the moment one can access Skype over Wi-Fi exclusively. The same thing was required from mobile television services.

Google has similarly restricted Skype’s usage in relation to VoIP in Google Android applications.

Apple admitted that it was its own decision to withdraw Google Voice from Apple Store and claimed that this software would not be missing forever.

The company claims that it will “keep working” on this application that substitutes some basic options of the iPhone including calls, SMS and voice mail services. Also, Apple is concerned with clients’ personal data being stored on Google’s servers. The corporation wants to be sure that this information will be used safely.

AT&T and Apple claim that iPhone clients are able to use Google Voice via Safari web browser without installing the application.

Google has sent two statements to the FCC with public and confidential information subsequently. The corporation preferred to hide the details of the discussions held between Apple, AT&T and Google on Google Voice’s usage in iPhones.

Google’s chief executive, Eric Schmidt has recently been forced to leave Apple’s Board of Directors due to the conflict. Both companies have already started their competition in the web browsers market, while smartphones based on Google Android might become iPhone’s competitors.

Moreover, Chrome operation system which Google’s working on might be a good competitor to Mac OS X.

Check out our latest article about cheap international calls. And another great article is Big business lobbyists are going to limit Skype in Russia