The question of just what two allies do when they suddenly find themselves in competition is one that's likely to become even more of an issue in the future as mobile empires extend their branches into new, fertile niches.

Google and Apple, up until fairly recently in league in plenty of sectors, are now up against each other in others: Android making a fair impression in the smartphone pool despite iPhone's apparent dominance, the two also clashing when it comes to the apps Google can and cannot launch on the App Store.

Recent chatter has also suggested Apple is discussing the possibility of making Microsoft's Bing the default search engine in future versions of the iPhone OS, Google having held that positions since launch.

But Google attests that there is nothing wrong with this picture. Although the media might be fixated with Android and Nexus One's challenge to iPhone, the search giant still sees Apple as a key player in its future operations.

"Apple is a very close and valuable partner, and we're very excited about the relationship we have with them today," said Vic Gundotra, head of mobile engineering for Google, according to Reuters. "We have no reason to believe that's going to change."

Gundotra's comments are a far cry from those recently made by Steve Jobs, the Apple CEO having claimed that Google was stoking a war between the two firms by entering into Apple's home territory, rather than the other way around.

"They want to kill the iPhone. We won't let them," he stated.

But Google would appear to believe it can still count on being the iPhone's default search engine in the future, Gundotra offering little comment on the rumoured Apple move for Bing. "We think that relationship is stable," he concluded.

Reuters