All responses are in to the Federal Communications Commission's query asking why Apple put Google Voice for its iPhone on ice. But chances are that the answers that the FCC has received from Apple and AT&T will only provoke more questions.

Here's the good news, iPhone users. Never mind that New York Times story citing a Google spokesperson saying that Apple nixed the app around mid-July. "Contrary to press reports," Apple's letter insisted, the company hasn't rejected the feature. It's just continuing to "study" it.

"The application has not been approved because, as submitted for review, it appears to alter the iPhone’s distinctive user experience by replacing the iPhone’s core mobile telephone functionality and Apple user interface with its own user interface for telephone calls, text messaging and voicemail," Apple explained.

And that's a problem, it seems, because Google Voice "replaces Apple's Visual Voicemail by routing calls through a separate Google Voice telephone number that stores any voicemail, preventing voicemail from being stored on the iPhone, i.e., disabling Apple’s Visual Voicemail."

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Indeed... It's bad news when Google looks like David and AT&T + Apple look like Goliath. AT&T and Apple's answers have raised more and more probing questions. Purely from a PR perspective, I think they are in over their heads. The tech media is feeling very scornful towards Apple's handling of App Store rejections and they already loathe the wireless carriers for innumerable reasons. The best bet here for Apple would be to concede, apologize, and show bold moves towards transparency and/or at open impartiality in the App Store review process. AT&T needs to suck it up and give their blessing to Google Voice. They should also work closely with streaming media and VoIP companies like Sling and Skype to bring these applications to their network. If they don't do this, someone else will.