Apple veto'd a parental control app for iPhone because it does something that it's one-time exclusive provider, AT&T does for a fee. Rowena Starling, an African American living in the Bay Area (California) is the creator of the Save-Your-Breath Android App offering parental controls with teen's and children's phones.  She would be the creator of Save Your Breath iPhone App as well if it were not for some vague policies offered in connection with Apple and AT&T when the prospectus was submitted to Apple for it's marketplace in late 2010. This begs the question "why?"   The App can remotely lock text messaging and phone calls except to pre-authorized numbers and 911 or other emergency services if children or teens do not meet specified check in points. There's a horde of proven controls at work to ensure both the safety of the child whose phone is manually set to accept the parental controls. In other words, you can't gain control over anyone's phone except your kid's).   In short, this is a well developed, and robust App that just happens to do something the carrier may have wanted exclusivity with.  Her app is poised as a structure to build relationship and trust, and it promotes self-commitment and responsibility on the part of the child or teen. It's great!   Comparitively, AT&T's app uses a lesser version of parental controls, featuring all the lockdown and little of the finesse offered by Rowena Starling's app. It's brutish, and is not very flexible. This wouldn't be the first time AT&T looked at anti-trust issues: AT&T was a monopoly that was broken up in the late 1980's.

Why should a monopoly, even if it is a one-time lawful trade agreement struck between Apple and AT&T- why should that monopolistic agreement protect AT&T's idea of how Parents can legitimately use phone privileges as a tool of discipline? In short, they shouldn't!!
  While Apple did not officially comment as to why they would deny the App from their marketplace, YOUR VOICE on this petition will at least provide pressure to communicate, and it may actually overturn this unfair monopoly. Rowena Starling genuinely seeks to help parents and children build trust and communication. Her app is well crafted, well developed, robust, and safe for kids to use. It offers a means to create this trust, but Apple and AT&T are currently preventing a good thing from being available to parents and teens. Please sign this petition as a concerned parent who wants to see more parenting apps and see fair use of discipline with children instead of "all or nothing tactics."