Google partly suspends business with Huawei due to US ban

Anca Alexe 20/05/2019 | 08:20

Google has suspended business with Huawei that involves the transfer of hardware, software and technical services, except when these are publicly available via open source licensing, according to reports by Reuters.

The US government has been trying to get Huawei blacklisted across the world after some countries have raised concerns that the company’s devices could be used by the Chinese government for surveillance, which Huawei has vehemently denied. The company has been excluded from 5G mobile networks plans in several countries.

Those who currently own Huawei smartphones and use Google apps wll continue to be able to do so and download Google updates, a Google spokesperson said. The next version of Android, however, may not be available on existing devices. Future Huawei smartphones will lose access to updates to Android, as well as to apps like Google Play Store, Gmail or YouTube.

“Huawei will only be able to use the public version of Android and will not be able to get access to proprietary apps and services from Google,” the source said.

On Thursday, the Trump administration added Chinese company Huawei to a trade blacklist, which would make it very difficult for it to do business with US companies.

Huawei has said it has been preparing for such a scenario for a few years now, by developing its own technology in case it is blocked from using Android. Some of this technology is already being used in products sold in China, the company has said.

While the impact of this move will be minimal in China, where most Google mobile apps are already banned, it might have a significant effect on Huawei’s European business, its second-biggest market.