Apple SVP of worldwide product marketing Phil Schiller has defended the company's approvals policy for iPhone apps, saying it's essential to build trust in the App Store from customers.

"We've built a store for the most part that people can trust," he tells Business Week.

"You and your family and friends can download applications from the store, and for the most part they do what you'd expect, and they get onto your phone, and you get billed appropriately, and it all just works."

In the interview, Schiller reveals that 90% of iPhone app rejections are due to technical bugs or issues, while 10% are rejected for other reasons - for example apps that steal personal data, help users break the law, or which contain "inappropriate content".

Of course, many of the complaints from iPhone developers about the approvals process have been about exactly what Apple defines as "inappropriate" - and whether it explains this clearly enough.

Schiller also says Apple pays great attention to trademark infringement within iPhone apps.

"Sometimes other companies come to us saying they've seen their trademarks used in apps without permission. We see that a lot."

That comment may raise a wry smile among Google execs, given that this weekend, an app called Google Wave that wasn't made by Google went live on the App Store.