google ban on huawei essay in english

Explained: Google Cuts Ties with Huawei. The Whole Story!

The past few years have been bittersweet for Huawei, much like the ending of the Game of Thrones. One the one hand, it has been steadily climbing the ranks as one of the largest smartphone manufacturers in the world, its products which also include its matebook line of ultrabook have gotten rave reviews from reviewers and users alike.

But on the other hand, it has been hit with several scandals that accuse the company of threatening its users privacy. Some reports even have accused Huawei of outright spying and espionage.

The latest blow to Huawei comes from Google, a company which every major smartphone company wants to have good relationship with (Google owns Android, so I guess you get the reason why). The exact situation is this: Google has halted business with Huawei regarding the transfer of hardware, software, and technical services except the products that have open source licensing. I will explain what this means in the subsequent paragraphs but first let me tell you why.

What did Huawei do?

Why did Google cut business ties with one of the world’s largest smartphone maker? Does this help Google in any rational way? Did Google feel threatened by Huawei’s growing dominance? Google’s smartphone dominance comes from Android, if a smartphone company uses Android, Google doesn’t care about anything else. Then what’s happening.

Did Huawei violate some of Google’s obscure policies? Not exactly.

So why is Google halting its support for your brand new Huawei P30 Pro ? The reason is the ongoing trade war between US and China. US has accused Huawei of spying on its users for the Chinese government and outright espionage. Of course Huawei has denied those claims but several security officials in US believe that Huawei poses a threat to national security.

So, they have put Huawei in an ‘entity’ list. This is a blacklist of sort where companies in the US cannot trade easily and freely with the members of the list. For Huawei, according to various media sources, US has restricted any transfer of hardware, software, or technical services. As Google is a US company, and Android its product, Google won’t be able to support Huawei phones anymore.

What are the effects of this ban?

First and foremost, if you have a Huawei phone, you will stop getting important security and system updates directly from Google. However, updates for google apps and other apps from the play store won’t be interrupted from this ban on current Huawei phones (according to Google). But future Huawei phones won’t be able to install proprietary Google apps like Chrome and Google Calendar.

For Huawei users’ questions regarding our steps to comply w/ the recent US government actions: We assure you while we are complying with all US gov’t requirements, services like Google Play & security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on your existing Huawei device. — Android (@Android) May 20, 2019

But the ban also stops Huawei from getting software update and active collaboration from Google on Android which might be bit of a problem for Huawei. For its upcoming phones, Huawei will have to rely on AOSP which is the open source version of the Android Project and build their skin on top of that.

The bottom line is that if you have an old Huawei phone, all your apps will run fine but you won’t get system updates and security updates from Google. The Huawei phones that are yet to be released won’t support Google’s proprietary apps and probably will come with a different Android experience than you are used to with Huawei devices.

What the companies have to say?

On Monday, Huawei promised to continue providing security updates and after-sale services for its smartphones and tablets. Huawei also said that it had been working on a contingency plan for a long time in the anticipation of an event like this. Why were they anticipating this? Huawei has been under the scrutiny of the US government for over a decade.

The only response from Google until now has been that it plans to comply with the ban and it is still reviewing the far-reaching implications of the ban on both companies.

The story doesn’t end

While the Google suspending business with Huawei got the spotlight, it is good to know that this ban imposed by the US government stops other tech companies from working closely with Huawei. Chip makers like Qualcomm, Broadcomm, Micron, and Intel have told their employees that they won’t provide critical information and components to Huawei until further notice.

The full implication of the blacklist hasn’t yet been disclosed . All the US-based companies and Huawei are carefully reading the blacklist to measure the extent of the damage. Analyst have told that this blacklist could hamper the development of the 5G network system around the world as Huawei is the leading telecommunications company to make 5G hardware.

Right after the blacklist was announced, U.S. Commerce Department said it was considering scaling back restrictions on Huawei to “prevent the interruption of existing network operations and equipment” according to Reuters.

We still need some days to get the news of the next steps that Huawei and other companies will be taking. We will have to wait to see if the US government will loosen its stance on Huawei because this blacklisting will severely affect companies on both sides.

One comment.

The U.S. really does NOT need to bother any more. Huawei Harmony OS will soon completely Separate from Google Chrome. Right now, still has some connection. And there is already closed to 0.5 billion users for Harmony OS. A couple of European companies already started to use Harmony OS, more will come. The world is big, so let’s just compete, but NOT playing dirty

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Google suspends Android support for Huawei: What it means for your smartphone

Google's decision to suspend Huawei's use of some parts of the Android operating system will send shockwaves through the smartphone market. Huawei is the second biggest smartphone maker but relies on the Android operating system, which is effectively run by Google, as the engine of its devices. Google will block Huawei's use of Android updates, apart from those made available in the open-source version of the operating system, according to Reuters.

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In a statement Huawei said: "Huawei has made substantial contributions to the development and growth of Android around the world. As one of Android's key global partners, we have worked closely with their open-source platform to develop an ecosystem that has benefited both users and the industry. 

"We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally," it said.

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"Huawei has created highly competitive hardware but Google services and Android OS are still critical to consumers in international markets. Losing Google's mobile services will be detrimental to Huawei's smartphone business," said analyst firm Canalys, noting that Huawei had a "stellar" first quarter in Europe

"Huawei smartphone supply freeze would trigger serious channel and market disruption," it said.

And Carolina Milanese, a tech analyst at Creative Strategies, tweeted: "This will have a huge impact on #Huawei in Europe the star market outside of China. It will be interesting to see if there are workarounds but as much as Huawei is key to Android gov't and enterprise market are key to Google."

Google's move comes after the US Department of Commerce last week added Huawei to its 'Entity List' because the department said it had information that led it to conclude that Huawei is engaged in activities that are contrary to US national security or foreign policy interest. US companies cannot transfer technology to a company on that list without a licence from the US government.

At the time, Huawei said the move would do significant economic harm to the American companies with which Huawei does business, affect tens of thousands of American jobs, "and disrupt the current collaboration and mutual trust that exist on the global supply chain". 

What does this mean for current Huawei smartphones?

Google has said that for current Huawei users nothing changes yet. "We assure you while we are complying with all US gov't requirements, services like Google Play & security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on your existing Huawei device," it said.

Huawei has said that it will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those have been sold or still in stock globally. 

However, it's unclear whether, when future versions of Android arrive, it will be possible to upgrade your Huawei smartphone.

What does this mean for future Huawei smartphones?

While Android is often described as an open source smartphone operating system, in reality many of the features that customers really use the most, like the Google Play store or Google Maps, are largely proprietary apps owned by Google.

As it stands, it seems that future versions of Huawei devices will not be able to use some of the services that Google has built on top of Android. That would mean Huawei would be limited to the open source version of Android, which provides the basic smartphone functions. One option will be to build up services -- just as Google has done -- on top of that basic framework.

Huawei has already revealed that is has had a back-up plan in place for eventualities like this. "We have prepared our own operating system. Should it ever happen that we can no longer use these systems, we would be prepared. That's our plan B. But of course we prefer to work with the ecosystems of Google and Microsoft," said Richard Yu, chief of Huawei's consumer group told a German newspaper earlier this year. The company also said: "Android and Windows will always remain our first choices."

But Forrester's principal analyst Charlie Dai said: "This move will have critical impact toward Huawei's business around smart phones. Huawei has its own mobile OS as a backup, but it's not fully ready yet and it's very difficult to build up the ecosystem as what Huawei has been doing on Android."

What does all of this have to do with 5G?

This chain of events really has little to do with Huawei smartphones (the company actually sells very few in the US), and has come about largely because of the ongoing row about 5G, security and Huawei. The US government has been increasing concerned about Huawei's networking technology being used to power 5G networks around the world. It warns that using Huawei means the Chinese government might be able to force the company to spy on customers or communications running over the network. As 5G is going to be a fundamental building block for new services like smart cities, the Internet of Things and self-driving cars the US and some of its allies are worried that the risk of using Huawei is too great. Huawei has denied that its technology could be used by the Chinese government in such a way. 

What's the impact of this likely to be?

Assuming the suspension stays in place long term this could have a serious impact on Huawei, forcing it to rapidly build up an alternative to the Android services on its phones, particularly in Europe where's its growth has been strongest. It won't have much affect on its China business which doesn't use the Google services anyway. It's likely going to be a boost for Huawei's rivals in the short term as the Chinese company scrambles to work out how to deal with this. Longer term it could mean a new - Chinese - rival to Android will now take shape. It's also worth looking at the context; the US and the China are embarking on an increasingly serious trade war; much will depend on how the Chinese government responds to this latest move.

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The Huawei ban explained: What it means for Huawei and Honor phones

Huawei has grown from a network equipment manufacturer into one of the world’s biggest and most recognised consumer electronics brands in a matter of years. It’s now the second biggest smartphone manufacturer in the world, ahead of Apple and behind only Samsung, but there is uncertainty around Huawei’s future due to the US’s trade war with China. President Trump’s ruling over the company saw it added to the US trade blacklist. 

Huawei’s biggest market is China but in many other regions governments  view it with suspicion, which has led some – including the US – to bar telecom operators from using Huawei equipment in their 5G rollouts. The UK, though, decided in January 2020 to allow Huawei kit “non-core” parts of the network .

For consumers, the biggest impact of the US’s decision is that Google can’t work with Huawei, which in turn means no Google services on new Huawei (or sub-brand Honor) phones and tablets.

Has the Huawei ban been lifted?

No. Currently, it is allowed to work with US firms to support existing phones and equipment on as temporary general licence.

For the fourth time, the US has delayed the date on which the full ban comes into effect. It was supposed to be 1 April, but will now be 15 May 2020.

During this time, mobile operators are supposed to phase out the use of Huawei and find alternatives.

What does Huawei use instead of Google?

There’s no question that Huawei makes great phones – the P30 Pro is one of the 10 best phones you can buy right now – but new models such as the Mate Xs ,  upcoming P40 , MatePad Pro 5G tablet, and Honor’s 9X Pro and View 30 Pro won’t have any Google apps, not even the Play Store.

So instead of shipping phones with Google Media Services, as they’re called, it now pre-loads them with Huawei Media Services.

As part of this, they use the Huawei App Gallery instead of the Google Play Store. Although there are lots of apps in it, currently you will only find four of the top 15 apps in the UK Google Play Store.

It’s still possible to ‘sideload’ these Google services onto Huawei and Honor devices, but Google itself has warned users not to , citing security risks.

Also, Huawei is teaming up with Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo to create the  Global Developer Service Alliance . It’s unclear how the App Gallery fits into this, and Xiaomi has since added that it has no desire to compete with Android, but a single app store will effectively do just that. 

For those who buy into the Huawei and Honor ecosystem there is some relief, and right now it is possible to add Google services to these devices after purchase. We’ve outlined how to add Google apps to the Huawei Mate 30 series  in this separate article. 

Can Huawei still use Android?

Yes. Android is open-source software that anyone can use. New Huawei and Honor phones are shipping with the open-source version of Android 10, with EMUI or Magic UI on top.

Huawei is developing its own operating system, Harmony OS , and at least one executive said that even if it could install Google apps and services in the future it would not. 

Just as a note for others who read this. There was no wiggle room in what Huawei told me, I asked them several times (as I was rather surprised myself) and they insisted on not going back to Google – even if the US ban falls. — Andreas Proschofsky (@suka_hiroaki)   January 30, 2020

To be fair, it makes sense that Huawei needs to have in place a firm future plan that is not reliant on whether or not the US feels like trusting it.

The history of the Google ban for Huawei users

The original US ban was temporarily lifted until 19 August, and since then has seen a series of 90-day extensions. Fast-forward to spring 2020 and still no-one seemingly knows the future plan, causing confusion for consumers who are, as a result, much less likely to buy Huawei products.

Tech Advisor believes the UK (and US) should continue to work with Huawei for seven very important reasons , and only one of those is the fact it makes some fantastic phones and tablets . 

The Huawei Mate 30 Pro went on sale in the UK in February 2020 (via Carphone Warehouse ), some five months after its launch. It’s the first device which doesn’t include Google apps and services, and it’s looking very much like the P40 will be the second (the Mate XS isn’t on sale yet).

There might be some glimmer of hope though, as Google at least hasn’t given up. In February 2020 the vice president for Google Play and Android, Sameer Samat, told German news agency DPA  that the company had applied to the US government for a license to trade with Huawei, potentially opening the door to re-installing Google Play Services on current and future Huawei devices.

There’s no word on when the US might make a decision on the license, but it’s not without precedent – Microsoft was granted a similar license in late 2019, which is why Huawei and Honor laptops are still able to ship with Windows 10 installed.

What the Google ban means for existing Huawei and Honor devices

If you’ve already bought a Huawei or Honor phone, tablet or other device that was announced before the trade ban there really is no cause for concern because nothing is about to change: Google is committed to providing continued support for these devices.

It said: “For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices.”

What is not clear is whether this will extend to new features, such as those provided in Android 10 and 11.

Though it appears that the relationship may have since soured, Huawei made an official statement on the news of the original ban back in summer 2019: “Huawei has made substantial contributions to the development and growth of Android around the world. As one of Android’s key global partners, we have worked closely with their open-source platform to develop an ecosystem that has benefitted both users and the industry.

“Huawei will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those that have been sold and that are still in stock globally.

“We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally.”

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Huawei, Google, and Android: what does Huawei's US ban mean for you and your phone?

All your questions about Huawei hardware answered

Tech and politics are clashing like never before, with Huawei officially out of favour in the US amid claims of secret surveillance and tight lights to the state government in China. But what does this mean for the Huawei phone in your pocket? Or any future Huawei phones?

The restrictions the US has placed on trade with Huawei means the likes of Google and component suppliers can't work as easily with the company as they might have before. Here we're going to outline exactly what that means for Huawei's smartphone business.

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What has happened between Huawei and the US?

Choosing a phone is difficult enough without taking trade wars into consideration, but the short summary is that trade relations between the US and China are currently strained. Added into the mix is a suspicion from the US side that Huawei can't be trusted in terms of its data collection and monitoring policies.

That doesn't mean there's a spy chip inside your Huawei P30 Pro , but it does mean the United States wants to avoid using Huawei infrastructure technology as it builds out its 5G networks. It also means Huawei is currently on an official blacklist , stopping companies such as Google and Qualcomm from dealing with it.

The situation is changing week by week though as the political posturing goes on. Most recently , at the end of June, President Trump said some of these trade restrictions would be lifted as far as smartphone tech goes – but at the time of writing the fine print hasn't been decided on, so it's not clear exactly what that means.

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How does this affect Google and Android?

Google develops Android , so the trade ban put in place by the US means future Huawei phones can no longer run Android, in theory – even the free, base version of Android that anyone can adapt and build on is still covered by a licence. Android is off the table and so are all the popular Google apps, from Gmail to Google Photos.

That is of course terrible news for Huawei, even though it's promised to bring out its own Android rival in the near future. It's not going to be able to catch up on the years of development Google has poured into its mobile operating system, and it's going to make its phones far less attractive in the US and Europe.

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As we've said though, the situation is still in flux. The Android block is bad news for Google as well as Huawei, and the latest indications from the US authorities are that Huawei phones will be able to carry on using US hardware and software as normal, even if the company remains banned at a commercial and industrial level.

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How is my current Huawei phone affected?

The good news for those who already have a Huawei phone (such as the Huawei Mate 20 Pro ) is that handsets that have already been sold shouldn't have too many issues. "All Huawei smartphones, tablets and PCs will continue to receive security patches, Android updates and Microsoft support," Huawei said in a recent statement .

"Anyone who has already bought, or is about to buy a Huawei smartphone, can continue to access the world of apps as they have always done," the statement continues . "All devices continue to be covered by our manufacturer’s warranty and will receive full service support accordingly."

You're not suddenly going to find Android or Facebook yanked from your phone, in other words. There is a question mark over how long you'll get Android updates for, but in terms of basic security patches at least, you should be covered for the lifetime of your handset.

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How might future Huawei phones be affected?

The situation is a lot less clear when it comes to future Huawei phones, because compromises are still being thrashed out between the US government, Huawei, and the Chinese authorities. The initial US ruling would have cut Huawei off from vital hardware components and US software, but that stance seems to have softened.

At this stage we just don't know what the future holds – all we can do is take note of what Huawei says with each future smartphone launch. The next one should be the Huawei Mate 30 phones sometime later this year. The trade ban as it stood to begin with was going to come into effect in mid-August, so there's still time for negotiations on both sides to reach some kind of agreement.

Huawei has gone on the record saying that Android Q will arrive on its most popular current devices, so it looks as though Huawei handsets that are already out in the wild will be okay for the time being. As for future ones, watch this space – at the moment it's not clear what Huawei will be able to do in terms of Android.

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What could change in the future?

As we've said several times, this is a situation that's constantly changing. For now, it appears the US trade ban won't cut off Huawei's access to Android software and the components it needs from US suppliers, which seemed to be the case to begin with. It might be business as usual, at least for Huawei's consumer devices.

The situation could quickly change again though as the US and China work through their differences. With more phones on the horizon from Huawei, all the parties involved will want a resolution in place sooner rather than later. Ultimately, Huawei phones outside of China is good for the industry as a whole.

Based on what we know at the moment, we'd say you are fine to go ahead and buy any Huawei phone on store shelves in the middle of 2019 – it'll stay supported and updated as normal, pretty much. The picture for the future is less clear-cut, but we should get more updates soon.

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Dave has over 20 years' experience in the tech journalism industry, covering hardware and software across mobile, computing, smart home, home entertainment, wearables, gaming and the web – you can find his writing online, in print, and even in the occasional scientific paper, across major tech titles like T3, TechRadar, Gizmodo and Wired. Outside of work, he enjoys long walks in the countryside, skiing down mountains, watching football matches (as long as his team is winning) and keeping up with the latest movies.

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Google blocks Huawei on Android: How the updates ban could affect your phone

Google has banned smartphone maker Huawei from some updates on its Android operating system.

The search giant confirmed it was complying with a US government order blacklisting the Chinese firm.

Google said it was "complying with the order and reviewing the implications", but assured Huawei users that their current phones would continue to work.

Last week, US president Donald Trump signed an executive order effectively banning the Chinese firm from using US technology without government permission.

WHAT DOES THE BAN MEAN FOR HUAWEI USERS?

Huawei smartphone users will be able to update apps and get the latest security fixes.

They will also be able to update Google Play services.

However, Google is launching the new version of Android later this year and it may not be available on Huawei smartphones.

There are fears that future Huawei devices will no longer have Google apps such as YouTube and Maps.

"For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices," a Google spokesman said.

The block is likely to prevent future updates to Android reaching Huawei devices.

Key Google apps such as the Google Play Store, Gmail and Google Maps may also not appear on future Huawei devices.

Instead, the Chinese firm would be reliant on the version of Android available through an open source licence, which is vastly more limited in its features.

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“SIGNIFICANT IMPACT” TO HUAWEI USERS

Huawei users have been warned they will be "significantly impacted" by Google restricting the Chinese firm's access to its Android software.

Industry expert Tristan Rayner, senior editor with the Android Authority news website, said the block means security updates to Huawei phones from Google will stop, and that buying a Huawei phone is now a "real risk".

"Existing Huawei device owners will be significantly impacted," he said.

"Whether it's someone with a brand new Huawei P30 Pro, which was unveiled last month, or the owner of an older Huawei Mate device that's a few years old, it's now clear that their Android operating system will no longer receive important security updates.

"Google's engineers are now forbidden to collaborate with Huawei engineers on these important updates. Google has said that users can still access the Google Play Store, and all the usual Google apps like Gmail, Google Maps, Search, Assistant, and so on.

"Therefore, while there will be some disruption, we do have some reassurances from Google that it isn't going to leave owners with a brick, effectively."

But, despite the assurances, Mr Rayner warned that buying future Huawei phones would be a "real risk" under the restrictions.

"Future Huawei devices will be significantly affected. We now know that future devices cannot be loaded with the Google Play Store, or those Google apps like Gmail or Google Maps," he said.

CAN HUAWEI USERS RETURN THEIR DEVICES?

Kate Bevan, editor of Which? Computing, said some recent purchasers of Huawei devices could consider returning their phones.

"It's unacceptable for consumers to be left without adequate security on their mobiles and Huawei owners will be seeking urgent reassurance that the safety of their devices will not be compromised," she said.

"In this situation, your consumer rights are limited as there's currently nothing faulty with these phones. However, if you purchased a phone in recent weeks it may be worth checking the retailer's returns policy."

HOW WILL IT AFFECT HUAWEI’S SALES?

Industry analyst Ben Wood from CCS Insight said the cut-off could have "considerable implications" for Huawei's gadgets business.

"We still don't have a clear understanding of what Google has told Huawei and what elements of the Android operating system may be restricted, so it remains unclear what the ramifications will be," he said.

"However, any disruption in getting updates to the software or the associated applications would have considerable implications for Huawei's consumer device business.

"People who currently own Huawei smartphones do not need to worry. At present any measures would only affect future devices and future updates. Google has publicly stated that its App Store, Google Play, and security updates from Google Play Protect will continue working on existing Huawei devices.

"However, until we have a clear understanding of what exact measures Google has decided to take it is impossible to second-guess the impact on future devices."

WHAT ABOUT HUAWEI’S OWN OS?

Huawei has previously confirmed it has been working on its own mobile operating system for use in the event of such blocks, something Mr Wood said now appeared likely.

"Huawei has been working hard on developing its own App Gallery and other software assets in a similar manner to the work it has done on developing its own chipsets for phones," he said.

"There is little doubt these efforts are part of its desire to control its own destiny.

"Last year, CCS Insight predicted that tensions between China and the US would present a strong incentive for Chinese companies to create their own operating system for smart devices. Given recent developments that seems more likely than ever."

HOW DID HUAWEI REACT?

"Huawei has made substantial contributions to the development and growth of Android around the world," the Chinese company said in a statement.

"As one of Android's key global partners, we have worked closely with their open-source platform to develop an ecosystem that has benefited both users and the industry.

"Huawei will continue to provide security updates and after sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products covering those which have been sold or are still in stock globally.

"We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally."

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Huawei Android ban: Google goes missing on the Huawei Mate 30

Well, well, well, it was a long time coming but the Huawei Android ban has finally seen a potentially industry-changing consequence. The Huawei Mate 30 event revealed all about the future of Google and Huawei.

The Huawei Android ban has been a long and winding road. While the journey is far from over, Huawei has now hit its biggest roadblock.

After months of uncertainty about whether Huawei devices could continue to run Google services, the company finally released its first Google-less phone. Mind you, Huawei is still using Google’s Android open-source project for its EMUI10 software – but this isn’t disallowed by the sanctions.

Read our Hands on: Mate 30 Pro review

While the Huawei Mate 30 saga seems to have provided some conclusion to the ambiguity of the Huawei Android ban, the issue is far from over. Huawei is likely hard at work to get as many apps on its devices as possible and – in coordination with the Chinese government – reverse any sanctions.

So, there’s still a lot to dissect and we’ve created a handy guide to try and explain it all.

Related: Huawei Mate 30 Pro vs Huawei P30 Pro

Why is there a Huawei Android ban?

Google’s parent Alphabet announced it would suspend any business that “requires the transfer of hardware, software and technical services except those publicly available via open source licensing,” with Huawei on Monday.

The move came after the US White House issued an “Executive Order on Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain” on May 15. The order was part of the country’s ongoing tit-for-tat battle with China over trade. It followed widespread, currently unproven, claims Huawei tech was being used by the Chinese government for spying.

Google isn’t the only company to reportedly be cutting ties with Huawei following the order. Microsoft recently removed the company’s MateBook laptops from its store. Intel, ARM and Qualcomm have also been reportedly forced to instigate bans.

We’ve contacted Microsoft, ARM, Qualcomm and Intel about the blocks but hadn’t received replies at the time of publishing. We’ll update this article when we do.

What Google services won’t work under the Huawei Android ban?

After months of uncertainty about the answer to this question – with delays and changes to the ban putting off us getting any answers – the Huawei Mate 30 is the first phone to show us the ban’s implications.

The Huawei Mate 30 range no longer has any Google services – meaning the answer to our own questions is: All of them.

The absence of any Google services means Huawei can’t use Google Play Store. Google Play Store gives Android phones access to all of the apps commonly used by Android users.

Huawei Mate 30 users will now be required to either sideload apps intended to be downloaded via the Google Play Store or only acquire apps via Huawei’s own store.

Huawei has said it intended to invest $1 billion in its own Huawei Mobile Services and that 45,000 apps are already integrated with its app platform – so, the Chinese company is clearly taking the removal of Google services extremely seriously.

While we don’t know for certain, the situation for the Huawei Mate 30 now seems like it will be the norm for Huawei-made phones. However – as we’ve learnt with the Huawei Android ban – the situation could shift at any time depending on the US and China dispute.

Related:  Best Android phones

Which phones are affected by the Huawei Android ban?

Ahead of the Huawei Mate 30 event, it had already been confirmed that it would be the first phone to be truly affected by the ban.  A Google spokesperson confirmed the Mate 30 range will not be able to be sold with licensed Google apps in accordance with the Huawei Android ban.

The Huawei Mate 30 event revealed the phone could not use Google services along with the Huawei Mate 30 Pro.

At the moment, the Huawei Android ban does not affect Huawei phones released before the Huawei Mate 30. These phones all currently still have access to all Google services.

Does the Huawei Android ban include Honor?

The Android ban also applies to phones from Huawei’s subsidiary brand Honor. At the time of publishing its newly unveiled Honor 20 Pro did still have access to Google services.

What does the US government say about the Huawei Android ban?

US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross gave a speech explaining the department will issue licenses “where there is no threat to US national security”. This is far from a full rollback, however. Ross clarified: “Huawei itself remains on the Entity List, and the announcement does not change the scope of items requiring licenses”. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow was also back to let us know the easing of requirements allowing for “safe” Huawei products to be purchased was only “for a limited period” — leaving the door open for the US to change its mind whenever it likes.

The “limited period” remark is extremely frustrating with regards to clarity for consumers. While Huawei phones currently receive Android updates, it remains hard to recommend the purchase of one when the US can have such a large impact on Google’s business with Huawei on a whim.

After a few months without any meaningful actions taken on the Huawei Android ban, things kicked into high gear as we hurtle towards the end of the 90-day extension given to Huawei. The extension allows Huawei phones to continue to receive Google/Android updates.

The 90-day extension now looks like it could be extended by – well – 90-days. However – in what feels like a  not so fast moment – Trump barged in to contradict his own officials on the potential extension. 

According to the FT , National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow stated the new extension was a gesture of “good faith” and a move to aid “American companies who need a couple of more months to make adjustments.”

No less than two days after Kudlow made these comments, President Trump said: “At this moment it looks much more like we’re not going to do business … I don’t want to do business at all because it is a national security threat.” Trump did say there could be exemptions for Huawei but it would be “very complicated”  – as if the situation wasn’t muddled enough already.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has now popped up again to confirm the new 90-day extension is now in place. The second 90-day extension will end on the 19th of November. Ross cited one of the reasons for the extension: “Some of the rural companies are dependent on Huawei, so we’re giving them a little more time to wean themselves off.”

Wilbur Ross also announced another 46 Huawei subsidiaries had been added to the ban list  – a move which Ross declared was the actual “big news” today.

What does the UK government say about the Huawei Android ban?

The United Kingdom’s response to the Huawei Android ban can be described as wishy-washy. Huawei has played a large role in the UK’s development of new network infrastructure and this seems to have left the government in a bit of a pickle.

When the UK government were set to make a decision, they chose to delay. Digital minister Jeremy Wright said Parliament would watch closely how the Huawei Android ban situation develops along with US and China relations. Wright chose not to criticise Huawei or  – even  – mention the security risks touted by the US government. The minister focused on the uncertainty that the ban places on doing business dealings with the Chinese company.

Wright’s statement and the UK government’s decision looks like it wasn’t enough for the US. US national security adviser John Bolton has stated he believes the UK will rethink any future role Huawei may have in the country’s telecoms infrastructure.

UK culture secretary Nicky Morgan has provided more clarity regarding when the country is expected to make a decision over Huawei’s involvement in 5G infrastructure.

On the BBC Radio Four Today programme, Morgan said: “I would hope that we could do something by the autumn, but we want to make the right decision and we’ve got to make sure that this is going to be a decision for the long term, making sure we keep all our networks secure … Huawei are not involved in the provision of government networks at the moment and that’s absolutely going to stay the same way, but we will look at all circumstances.”

When does the Huawei Android ban take effect?

The ban was originally meant to take effect on 16 May, but Google  – and other US companies  – were given a 90-day extension to do business with Huawei, while it “evaluates” the ramifications of the executive order. Another 90-day extension –  which ends on the 19th of November  – has now been announced. The recent comments from President Trump in which he stated he was still reluctant to do business with Huawei do not seem to have hampered the extension.

We’ll be updating this page as and when new information comes out. Make sure to bookmark it and check back with Trusted Reviews for all the latest information on the Huawei Android ban.

Adam is the Computing Editor of Trusted Reviews. He joined as a staff writer in 2019 after graduating from Newcastle University with an MA in Multimedia Journalism. After spending two years at WIRED,…

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Huawei barred from Google updates: What you need to know if you own a Huawei or Honor phone

SINGAPORE - Google has stopped providing software and hardware services to Chinese smartphone maker Huawei , to comply with a US government order.

Future versions of Huawei smartphones that run on Android will lose access to popular services including the Google Play Store, Gmail and YouTube apps.

In response to the ban, a Huawei spokesman said on Monday (May 20) that the firm "will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those that have been sold and that are still in stock globally."

US tech firms Intel, Qualcomm, Xilinx and Broadcom will stop supplying hardware components to Huawei until further notice.

Here is how the moves will affect Huawei and Honor (Huawei's sub-brand) users.

Can I use Google apps and services on my Huawei smartphone?

Existing owners of Huawei smartphones can continue to enjoy Google apps and services, such as Google Maps, Gmail and YouTube. They can still use the Google Play Store and receive security and software updates for Google apps and services.

Huawei barred from Google updates Worried about how the Google ban on Huawei will affect you? http://str.sg/oVyG Posted by The Straits Times on Tuesday, May 21, 2019

What about future Huawei smartphones?

The same Google apps and services will not be available on future Huawei smartphones because of the US ban. The same already applies to smartphones built for the China market, which substitute Google apps and services for Chinese-made equivalents from the likes of Baidu and Tencent.

Huawei can still use the Android mobile operating system, which is available via an open-source licence. This open-source version - Android Open Source Project (AOSP) - can be used and modified by anyone. Huawei, though, will lose early access to future versions of Android, potentially delaying new Android updates.

But the biggest blow is the lack of Google apps and services, which will dissuade most users outside China from buying Huawei smartphones. This will likely dash Huawei's hopes of overtaking South Korea's Samsung as the top smartphone maker this year.

Should I buy a Huawei smartphone?

Existing Huawei smartphones, like the recent Huawei P30 Pro, will continue to have access to Google apps and services, as well as security updates. But Huawei may not be able to update the Android software to the next version promptly, if at all.

Since most Android smartphone makers, such as Samsung, take months to update the Android software with the latest features, consumers may not be overly concerned about this.

Huawei said it has been stockpiling hardware components in anticipation of a US ban . It also makes its own proprietary smartphone processors. Hence, it is likely that Huawei will be able to replace any damaged components in the event that a smartphone breaks down within its warranty period.

What about other Huawei devices?

Besides smartphones, Huawei makes tablets, smartwatches and laptops. Its smartwatches are probably the least affected, as they run Huawei's own LiteOS software instead of Google's. But Huawei's Android tablets will likely face the same issues as its smartphones.

The US ban is also a blow to Huawei's aspirations in the PC market. Its MateBook laptops had received excellent reviews last year and new, updated models are slated to launch in the US and other countries, including Singapore, this year. But, like most computers, these Huawei laptops will be affected as they rely on technology from US firms - Microsoft's Windows software and Intel processors.

A Huawei spokesman told The Straits Times that a media event in Singapore for its MateBook laptop planned for May 22 has been postponed with no new date given. Huawei also would not say if it will launch its laptop in Singapore on May 30, as originally announced earlier this month.

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Chris Stokel-Walker

Google's Android ban puts a stop to Huawei's world domination plan

A week is a long time in tech. Last Tuesday Huawei was an increasingly dominant force in the smartphone world, the heir apparent to become king of the manufacturers, almost certain to wrest the crown within months. A week on, and thanks to the whim of the world’s most powerful man, its reputation is in tatters and its future as a smartphone titan in doubt.

After Reuters reported Google may ban the Chinese company from some services, Google confirmed on May 19 it would block new Huawei smartphones from accessing updates to its Android open-source operating system. The decision, which comes after United States president Donald Trump added Huawei to a blacklist of companies the country cannot trade with, will have a major impact on the global smartphone market.

“It’s difficult not to conclude this is all geopolitical and to do with trade wars,” explains Alan Woodward, a cyber security professor at the University of Surrey. “I think we’re all going to lose out. There are genuine concerns about the Chinese government having coercive laws and Huawei’s processes, but not the sort of blanket ban that America has been going for.”

The executive order which placed Huawei on the US’s “entity list” on May 15 said the company “is engaged in activities that are contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy interest” – something the company strenuously denies. Given the political declaration that Huawei isn’t to be trusted, Google’s hand was forced, requiring it to pull access to future iterations of the Android operating system. It’s a massive blow to the standing of the company, which has rapidly risen to become a major player in the smartphone world.

Huawei manufactures nearly nearly one in five smartphones currently in use worldwide today – the second-biggest manufacturer behind South Korean conglomerate Samsung. Seven years ago, it held just three percent of the market.

The company has long been dominant in China, but has taken advantage of the price sensitivity of consumers, and the global nature of the tech business, to expand beyond its borders and enjoyed almost unchecked success. In Europe, Huawei sales grew 56 per cent between 2017 and 2018 , according to data from Canalys, compared to drops of one per cent and five per cent respectively for Samsung and Apple. “Huawei was probably on a trajectory to become the number one smartphone manufacturer in the world,” says Horace Dediu, a smartphone analyst – until this setback.

Medea Giordano

Louryn Strampe

Since Google announced it would stop Huawei from accessing Android, Donald Trump has issued a temporary reprieve to the company. As reported by The Financial Times a new licence has been issued that allows US companies to continue working with the Chinese company for the next three months. "The temporary general licence grants operators time to make other arrangements and the [commerce] department space to determine the appropriate long term measures for Americans and foreign telecommunications providers," US government officials said in a statement.

However, Huawei's founder Ren Zhengfei responded by saying the US had underestimated the "strength" of this company. He told Chinese state media that no other company could catch-up with its 5G technology in the coming months and years.

One thing is almost certain about this week’s decision: it’ll affect Huawei’s bottom line. “The volumes outside China are going to be affected,” says Dediu. However, it could be good news for the phone manufacturer that Huawei has replaced in recent years. “Where Huawei lose, Samsung could take up the difference.”

Read more: What Google's Huawei ban means for millions of Android owners

For years, western tech companies have relied on lower labour costs in China to provide them with cheap hardware that hosts software developed in the west. “Software and hardware need each other equally,” says Woodward. “There’s a bit of a danger of: ‘We’ll keep our software, you keep your hardware,’ and everybody loses.”

That’s particularly obvious given Huawei’s position in the market. “You wouldn’t say Huawei are dominant but they’ve taken so much market share, they’re everywhere,” says Dediu. “Huawei stands to lose a great deal if trust in its brand is evaporating and its future users won’t have access to Google.”

It’s that access to preinstalled Google apps which could harm Huawei’s standing in the long run, quite aside from the reputational damage of being singled out as damaging to US national security. Google has pulled the plug on Huawei’s access to future updates to Android, Google’s open-source operating system. That means that while current Huawei phones on the market will continue to be unaffected, future versions won’t have Google apps (such as Gmail and Google Maps) preinstalled.

“Losing the right to preinstalled Google apps and Play Services is a big issue in the Android ecosystem,” explains Robert Baptiste, a French security researcher. “Play Services is the applicative backbone of Android,” he says. Many Android apps use Play Services to communicate – incorporating Google Maps into wayfinding apps, for instance. Without access to Play Services, many apps will refuse to work.

Lay users will also miss ready access to those same apps – like Gmail and Google Maps – which could effect sales even if Huawei develops its own operating system and suite of apps. But even the Android operating system itself is intrinsically tied into Google apps and the Play Store.

“The reason it’s caught people out is that they’re suddenly realising that though Android is basically an open source, open licence operating system, it’s not quite that black and white,” says Woodward. “There are some wrinkles. By doing what Google has done, they are going to cause Huawei problems.” However, an unusual saviour may soften the blow for the Chinese manufacturer: the European Union. In October 2018 it accepted changes to the Android operating system that allowed forked versions access to the Play Store in exchange for avoiding a £3.8 billion fine .

The rapid decision to withdraw support could also spook other phone manufacturers into being less beholden to Google’s decisions. “I think that other vendors and users will ask themselves what’s the implication here for continuing to participate in this ecosystem,” says Dediu. For years, smartphone manufacturers have contended themselves with making the hardware and relying on Google’s Android operating system to provide the software.

In 2012 Samsung developed Tizen, its own operating system to escape its reliance on Google, but continues to use Android for most of its smartphones. In part, that’s because of the rapid development of Android, with plentiful updates that third-party operating systems created by phone manufacturers can’t keep pace with. “There’s been a surrender of the idea of independence by all the OEMs,” says Dediu. “They said we can’t really act independently so we’ll just go on with this for as long as necessary.” But this decision could refocus minds.

Huawei has said it will continue to support its users, going it alone in providing security updates. “We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally,” a Huawei spokesperson said. That said, Donald Trump is a temperamental decision-maker. There’s always the chance he could change his mind tomorrow, and Huawei will be welcomed back into the Android fold.

Updated May 21, 2019 09:02 BST: This article has been updated to include details of the US temporary trade licence and Huawei's response

This article was originally published by WIRED UK

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Pocket-lint

What does huawei's trade ban mean for your present or future huawei phone.

The Chinese giant has been blacklisted by the US in the latest skirmish of the ongoing trade war - we've updated our advice for those who have a Huawei phone or who might want to buy one in the future.

In May 2019, Huawei was subject to a US trade ban which meant it couldn't work with some of its long-term partners. It had wide-reaching effects on the company, cutting its ties with companies it relied on for a lot of its technologies. 

The biggest change for consumers, however, was that Huawei could no longer work with Google, and that meant no more phones running full versions of Android with Google Play Services. So no Google Play Store, Google Maps, Photos, Gmail or any other default and necessary apps many Android users rely on. 

No new phone launched since that initial ban has had these services apart from the  P30 Pro New Edition  (May 2020) which is, essentially, an upgraded P30 Pro rather than a new phone. 

Initially seen as a symptom of the Trump administration in the US, it's clear that revisiting China trade issues isn't going to be among President Biden's top priorities . 

These Huawei phones don't have Google services

Essentially, anything launched since May 2019 won't have any Google Maps. That means the Huawei P50 series, Nova 9, Mate X2 ,   Huawei P40 and P40 Pro , Mate 40 series , Mate 30 series ,  Mate Xs and  Honor 30 series  don't have any Google apps . They rely on Huawei apps and the App Gallery download store, which - while improving constantly - are still missing a number of popular apps and services.

In particular things like many online banking apps and specific services aren't currently catered for, although Huawei is making a huge effort to improve this. 

• What apps can you actually get on Huawei's App Gallery?

New Huawei phones do come with Android-based software (with Huawei's HarmonyOS 2.0 or EMUI user interface on top). But you can only install Google apps via a relatively convoluted and dodgy process and neither Huawei or Google officially recommend this. 

The story so far

In May 2019 it was announced by the US government that Google and US businesses have to  change the way they deal with Huawei . The Chinese giant was blacklisted by the US in the latest skirmish of the ongoing trade war. 

Google was particularly vociferous  that preventing Huawei using its version of Android could potentially result in national security issues through people using a Huawei-developed replacement OS -  now revealed to be HarmonyOS . In reality, it's probably because non-Android phones would hit Google profits. 

On 29 June 2019 , President Trump said  he had agreed to allow US tech companies like Google and Qualcomm to once again start selling to Huawei following the restart of trade talks between the US and China. The caveat is that it's only for goods not connected to national security. Trump made the comments at a press conference at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan. The move seemed to be a reaction to the fact US companies were feeling the effect of the ban.

On 1 August 2019 Trump appeared to contradict his earlier statement (for a change), "we're not allowing Huawei into our country, we're not changed on that". This would have shown a stronger stance had he not immediately clarified it with "we can do business on non-security things with Huawei, we can do that". On 5 September Trump stated again that "Huawei is a big concern of our military, of our intelligence agencies, and we are not doing business with Huawei".

Around this time, Huawei and Honor devices were added back onto the  Android Enterprise Recommended website . That's significant as Google is actively recommending them to businesses for long-term use.

Huawei filed a lawsuit against the US telecoms regulator (the FCC) as it has banned US carriers from buying Huawei gear with subsidies paid by the FCC to carries to guarantee access to telco services continue to be available right across the US.

In January 2020 the Trump administration signed a trade agreement with China which saw a thawing of the trade war, but there was no provision for Huawei in the agreement. It's thought that a second deal is on the table but there isn't a consensus on whether this will help or hinder Huawei. 

The US Department of Commerce has dumped plans to introduce rules to mak it harder for American companies to deal with Huawei - presumably because of the damage to US businesses. As we mentioned, Google is not a fan of the trade ban. It does, however, show that different parts of the US Government can't agree on a united plan of dealing with the company.

In late 2019, the Department of Commerce said it had  received around 300 license requests  for continuing to deal with Huawei and has approved arrange a quarter of them. 

On 14 May 2020 it was announced the Trump administration had extended the original trade ban for another year until May 2021 stopping US companies from purchasing or using telecommunications equipment made by firms considered a national security risk. 

A temporary license the enabled Huawei to continue making software updates for existing phones, expired on 17 August 2020 , though security updates look to be exempt. Part of its reason for existence was to enable rural network operators in the US to continue receiving updates for the Huawei hardware built into its cell towers. However, for most consumers, it's the effects on the smartphone side of things that will be most keenly felt. The expiration means Google can't provide updates either. 

Further sanctions in August 2020 effectively cut off Huawei's supply of chips, including the tech it needs to make its own KIrin phone chips and other chips it makes. As CNN notes , analysts called the move a "lethal blow". 

Trump's defeat in November 2020 raised Huawei's hopes   that the incoming Biden administration could soften its approach. However, several outlets -   like the Washington Post   - have reported that Biden is "likely to remain tough on Chinese tech". Indeed it quotes an early 2020 article from Biden that says "The United States does need to get tough with China. If China has its way, it will keep robbing the United States and American companies of their technology and intellectual property,"

Also in November, US company Qualcomm received a license to supply Huawei with some 4G chips - perhaps a taste of things to come - joining also US-based Intel and Microsoft in being able to supply Huawei. It certainly seems as though a US goal of creating an advantage for its companies is beginning to take effect. 

Before leaving office, it appeared that the Trump administration-led Commerce Department intended to "deny a significant number of license requests for exports to Huawei and a revocation of at least one previously issued license." 

As we mentioned earlier, it doesn't seem that China trade will be an issue President Biden will prioritise given there are more pressing situations.  Janet Yellen, Biden's pick to lead the Treasury Department, has already promised action on China's "abusive, unfair and illegal practices" according to CNN . 

On 16 June 2021  Honor launched its first phone as an independent brand. Having previously been a subsidiary of Huawei - very much focused on western markets where Google Play Services are essential - it was separated from its parent company so that it could once again build and sell phones with a full version of Android onboard. It's sinch launched a few new handsets, including its first foldable: the Magic V . 

How does Huawei feel about the situation?  

At the Mate 30 launch in September 2019, Huawei CEO Richard Yu told Pocket-lint that Huawei could push Google apps to affected devices "overnight" if the ban was lifted but said that he felt the phone will still sell well in many territories, especially China of course (we've been led to believe this is the case).

He also opened up on his feelings about the ban. "It’s not good for US companies, it’s not good [for us]…in the past we [made] a big contribution to US companies. And now it’s not allowed to use…it's damaging to US companies' business.

"We are very open and transparent. We are a globalised company. In the US-China trade war we have become a bargaining chip.

"We didn’t want to do this…we were forced to do this. We have a good partnership with Google but the US Government forced us to do this. I hope you guys [journalists] can understand this."

On 18 May 2020, Huawei  issued a strongly-worded statement  hitting out at the  latest proposed measures  to stop it using US technologies at all, including in the manufacture of chips inside its other products. 

"In its relentless pursuit to tighten its stranglehold on our company, the US government has decided to proceed and completely ignore the concerns of many companies and industry associations," said the statement.

"This new rule will impact the expansion, maintenance, and continuous operations of networks worth hundreds of billions of dollars that we have rolled out in more than 170 countries."

"The US is leveraging its own technological strengths to crush companies outside its own borders. This will only serve to undermine the trust international companies place in US technology and supply chains. Ultimately, this will harm US interests."

Now that it's running on three years since the original ban, Huawei's efforts have been firmly behind building its own ecosystem of products and services, all tied together using the HarmonyOS platform. It's acting and planning as if the Google partnership will never return, although it has spun off Honor as an independent company, so that Honor can work on building Android phones again, without the restrictions placed on its former parent company. 

How does this relate to the Huawei 5G issue in the UK?

Australia and Japan have blocked Huawei from involvement in 5G networks, but the UK Government saw no reason to do the same in January 2020, limiting its involvement in an individual mobile network to less than 35 per cent of the non-core network.

However, the sands shifted - on 15 May 2020 the US Commerce Department outlined further restrictive measures  on Huawei to  restrict it from making chips using US technologies using American-based IP or even equipment. The new rules mean that Huawei would need a license to use any US tech. Huawei had tried to 'indigenize' some of its design processes within the US to circumvent the original ban which clearly the US didn't like. 

This ruling has had a huge effect because it forced the UK Government into reversing its earlier decision on Huawei 5G network gear.  The UK has now said telcos can't use Huawei 5G network gear after 2027 and need to stop buying new equipment by the end of 2020. There's a deadline on installing this of September 2021. 

The US telecoms regulator – the FCC – also recently designated Huawei and ZTE as 'national security threats' but, as with the trade ban, has not released any evidence to this effect publicly.

The UK may have been backed into a corner. The UK needs a US trade deal in the post-Brexit world and further restrictions on Huawei seems like it would be a pre-requisite.

• Does having Huawei tech in our 5G networks really matter?

What does the trade ban mean for existing Huawei devices?

Existing pre-May 2019 Huawei devices like the P30 Series  (including the P30 Pro New Edition), P20 Series and Mate 20 Series are unaffected in their current form. No apps will disappear and they can continue to use Google apps and get security updates. Because Honor is a subsidiary of Huawei, the same implications would apply to its older handsets, too.

Google is clear on this point: "For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices".

For its part, Huawei says it "will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products covering those which have been sold or are still in stock globally."

What wasn't clear for a time was whether Huawei and Honor handsets would get feature updates. But we now know the following devices are getting the upgrade to Android 10 during 2020. So the owners of these phones need not worry at all about this situation. 

• Mate 20 Huawei
• Mate 20 Pro
• P smart 2019
• P smart+ 2019
• Mate 20 X 5G
• Mate 10 Pro
• Porsche Design Mate 10
• Mate 20 Lite
• Honor 20i/20 Lite
• Honor 20 Pro

19 January 2022 update: Update with more current view of the Honor/Huawei situation

21 January 2021 update: Post-inauguration of President Biden with latest details. 

1 December update: Updated post-US Election. 

30 May update: Added extra links and context about the ongoing situation.

11 June update: Added new developments from Google and UK operators.

20 June update: Added information about devices getting Android Q update

1 July update: Added information on Trump's G20 statement and new Huawei statement

9 August update: Major rework after the announcement of HarmonyOS

12 August update: Android Enterprise information added

30 August update: Added latest info from Reuters

9 September update: Added Mate 30 information from IFA 2019

18 September update: Added latest Mate 30 information

20 September update: Added Mate 30 launch information and Richard Yu quotes

11 November update: Added latest situation on US-China trade talks

6 December update: Added latest information

20 January update 2020: Added latest information including trade deal developments

13 March update: Refined information

28 April update: Added latest information

14 May update: Updated with latest Trump ban

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Explained: Why news of Google suspending business with Huawei is important

Google has suspended business that “requires the transfer of hardware, software and technical services” with huawei..

Google is suspending some business with Huawei, and this could impact the future of Android on smartphones made by the Chinese company and its sub-brand, Honor. The news was first reported by Reuters Monday. Neither Google nor Huawei has issued a detailed official statement.

What has Google done?

According to Reuters, Google has suspended business that “requires the transfer of hardware, software and technical services” with Huawei . Everything is impacted, except features available via open source licencing. In effect, Google has cancelled Huawei’s Android licence.

Google acted after the Donald Trump administration added Huawei to a trade blacklist that bars American companies from doing business with blacklisted companies without “explicit approval” from the government. “We are complying with the order and reviewing the implications,” Google said in a statement.

What happens to people who have Huawei phones?

Unless Huawei is taken off the “Entity List”, there is a good chance its phones will not be able to run Android’s proprietary services and apps like Gmail, YouTube, and Chrome in the future. While Android will continue to work for now, it is unclear what happens next — including whether existing Huawei phones will ever get an Android update again. Android has monthly security updates and yearly operating system updates.

Huawei can still use Android from the Android Open Source Project, but proprietary services cannot be accessed without a commercial licence from Google. Future Huawei phones may not come with Google and Android services.

Google’s Android account tweeted: “For Huawei users’ questions regarding our steps to comply with the recent US government actions: We assure you while we are complying with all US govt requirements, services like Google Play & security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on your existing Huawei device.”

But again, Play Store and Play Protect are proprietary services, and Google has not said what will happen in the future. Access to Play Store is an important part of the Android experience, and is crucial for Huawei in markets outside China. In China, Google and its services are banned, so Huawei phones there are unlikely to be impacted.

What has Huawei said on the situation?

A spokesperson for the company said: “Huawei will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those that have been sold and that are still in stock globally. We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally.”

What it did not confirm was whether existing Huawei phones would be updated to the next version of Android, and whether future phones would run the operating system.

Huawei phones also run EMUI, the company’s own OS, on top of Android. It comes its own unique user interface and personalised apps. This is a common approach in the Android world — companies often add their own user interface to Android, although the core Google services are part of all devices.

Senior Huawei executive Richard Yu recently told the German daily Die Welt that the company was preparing its “own operating system”. “Should it ever happen that we can no longer use these systems, we would be prepared. That’s our plan B. But of course, we prefer to work with the ecosystems of Google and Microsoft ,” he said.

How will Huawei be impacted?

In the first quarter of 2019, Huawei became the world’s second largest smartphone manufacturer. According to numbers from research firm International Data Corporation (IDC), Huawei is ahead of Apple , behind only Samsung in the list of smartphone vendors. The company saw a year-over-year growth of 50.3% in the quarter, with 59.1 million units being shipped. Canalys, another big research form, said 50.6% of Huawei’s shipments were in China; the rest in international markets.

Huawei’s flagship phones, P30 Pro and Mate 20 Pro, have got excellent reviews. Honor is a more affordable, mid-range brand. The new Honor 20 series is coming this week.

“Globally, of course, it (Google’s action) will have a major impact since almost half of its (Huawei’s) business comes from outside China, especially from the many markets in Europe. In India, they have never been able to scale up to be a major player. Huawei and Honor together have around 4.5% of the market share in India. But this does put a spanner in Huawei’s possible aggressive plans for India as the growth market in the next 2-3 years outside of China,” Navkendar Singh, Research Director, Devices and Ecosystem, India and South Asia, IDC, told The Indian Express .

Canalysis said in a statement that “Google services and Android OS are still critical to consumers in international markets”, and “losing Google’s mobile services will be detrimental to Huawei’s smartphone business”.

Bloomberg reported that Intel Corp, Qualcomm Inc, Xilinx Inc, and Broadcom Inc, too, have also said they won’t be supplying Huawei until further notice.

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Anuj Bhatia is a personal technology writer at Indianexpress.com who has spent a decade covering gadgets, apps, and gaming. He specialises in writing longer-form feature articles and explainers on trending tech topics. His unique interests encompass delving into vintage tech and composing in-depth narratives on the intersection of history, technology, and popular culture. Prior to joining The Indian Express in late 2016, he served as a senior tech writer at My Mobile magazine and previously held roles as a reviewer and tech writer at Gizbot. Anuj holds a postgraduate degree from Banaras Hindu University. You can find Anuj on Linkedin. ... Read More

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Google addresses Huawei ban and warns customers not to sideload apps like Gmail and YouTube

Google says sideloaded apps pose a significant security risk.

By Chris Welch , a reviewer specializing in personal audio and home theater. Since 2011, he has published nearly 6,000 articles, from breaking news and reviews to useful how-tos.

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Google on Friday evening published a support article meant to clarify the ongoing situation with Huawei . Last year, the United States government barred companies in the US from working with the Chinese hardware maker. “Google is prohibited from working with Huawei on new device models or providing Google’s apps including Gmail, Maps, YouTube, the Play Store and others for preload or download on these devices,” Tristan Ostrowski, legal director for Android and Google Play, wrote in the post, which was picked up by 9to5Google .

According to Google, there’s still plenty of confusion around what’s going on — and exactly which products are subject to the Google services ban.

We have continued to receive a number of questions about new Huawei devices (e.g., new models launching now, or earlier models launched after May 16, 2019 but now becoming available in new regions of the world) and whether Google’s apps and services can be used on these devices. We wanted to provide clear guidance to those asking these important questions. 

The article contains some of Google’s most direct comments on the Huawei saga yet. The company steers clear of weighing in on whether Huawei poses any threat to US national security, which intelligence agencies and lawmakers have insisted is the case. “Our focus has been protecting the security of Google users on the millions of existing Huawei devices around the world,” Ostrowski wrote. “We have continued to work with Huawei, in compliance with government regulations, to provide security updates and updates to Google’s apps and services on existing devices, and we will continue to do so as long as it is permitted.”

Huawei products released on or before May 16th, 2019 may continue to get those updates — for now. But anything that came later is considered “uncertified,” as Google has been unable to put those devices through its “rigorous” security checks or preload them with Google Play Protect software, which can detect when hardware has been compromised.

But Google does have a warning for customers with newer Huawei products: don’t try to sideload Gmail, YouTube, the Play Store, or other Google software onto those uncertified devices. Because the company can’t guarantee that they’re the real deal or free of malware.

Sideloaded Google apps will not work reliably because we do not allow these services to run on uncertified devices where security may be compromised. Sideloading Google’s apps also carries a high risk of installing an app that has been altered or tampered with in ways that can compromise user security.  

Google is trying to avoid the politics side of this, while also sternly dissuading people from going the backdoor route to maintain access to the company’s popular services. Ostrowski ends the support article by outlining how to see whether the Android device you’re using has been certified under Google Play Protect. “To check if your device is certified, open the Google Play Store app on your Android phone, tap ‘Menu’ and look for ‘Settings.’ You will see if your device is certified under ‘Play Protect certification.’’

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More from this stream Huawei vs. Trump: all the news about the Chinese phone maker’s messy relationship with the US

Us agrees not to pursue fraud charges against huawei cfo, huawei founder says company should dodge sanctions by pivoting to software, trump administration blacklists xiaomi as a ‘communist chinese military company’, samsung reportedly cutting off chip sales to huawei.

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Huawei Users, Here’s What You Need To Know About Google’s Android Ban

In this article

Last Wednesday (May 15), the US Commerce Department has placed Huawei Technologies and 70 affiliates to its “Entity List” , which bars companies from doing business with US companies.

This list represents a list of companies that the US believes poses a national threat. Huawei in particular, is said to be “engaged in activities that are contrary to US national security or foreign policy interest”.

Being placed on the list means that Huawei — the world’s second-largest smartphone maker — cannot buy parts and components from American companies without US government approval .

This is a huge blow to Huawei, considering that it works with a broad range of US suppliers for its products, including chip makers Intel and Qualcomm, as well as Google for its Android operating system.

According to The Nikkei, Huawei buys about US$67 billion worth of components each year. Out of this figure, US$11 billion is from US suppliers.

Google Cuts Ties With Huawei

Complying to the new federal directive, Google has blocked Huawei’s future access to Android updates .

This means that Huawei will no longer be able to offer access to crucial Google apps, and will be severely limited in how quickly it can give users access to the latest versions of Android, as well as its new features and security updates.

However, the US Commerce Department has issued a temporary license for Huawei to work with businesses in the US , allowing Huawei to resume its partnership with Google.

This will last only until August 19 and it’s unclear how Huawei can gain the full license to work with US brands after this 90-day timeframe.

In response to this saga, Huawei said that it will “continue to provide security updates and after sales services to all existing Huawei and Honor smartphone and tablet products, covering those [that] have been sold or still in stock globally.”

What Does It Mean For Huawei Users?

Following this news, Huawei users in Singapore have rushed to sell their P30 phones on Carousell , worried that it will become obsolete soon.

But don’t panic just yet.

In an official statement, Huawei said: “The products we have sold and currently sell will not be affected. You will be able to continue using these services as you normally would .”

In addition, Android has also tweeted that “ Google Play and security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on existing Huawei device.”

For Huawei users’ questions regarding our steps to comply w/ the recent US government actions: We assure you while we are complying with all US gov’t requirements, services like Google Play & security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on your existing Huawei device. — Android (@Android) May 20, 2019

However, the future for Huawei phones remain unclear. It may have to turn to open-source Android, which lacks popular Google apps such as Gmail, Maps and YouTube.

Without access to the Google Play Store, Huawei would be forced to work directly with developers to get them to create versions of their wares for its phones.

How Will The Ban Impact Huawei’s Business?

The impact on the China market is expected to be minimal as most Google mobile apps are already banned in China (they rely on alternatives offered by local firms like Tencent and Baidu instead).

However, this move will greatly damage the brand’s appeal to consumers outside of China.

Last year, almost half of the 208 million phones Huawei shipped is directed to outside mainland China.

Europe in particular, is Huawei’s most important overseas market where its devices currently have 29 per cent market share, according to technology research firm IDC.

In regions like Europe, having those Google apps is critical for smartphone makers to stay competitive.

As a workaround for the Google ban, Huawei would have to ultimately build its own operating system, just like what Apple did for its iPhones.

Alternatively, Huawei could start a new branch of the Android family based on the existing open source version.

Either way, both solutions will definitely take time.

Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei told Japanese media on Saturday (May 19) that they’ve “ already been preparing for this (blocked from using Android)”.

The company has come up with a ‘Plan B’ by developing its own technology for nearly seven years , and some of this technology is already being used in products sold in China.

Mr Ren said that Huawei would continue to develop its own components to reduce its reliance on external suppliers .

He is confident that Huawei will continue to see growth, albeit slight and slow progress.

While the recent ban seems to only affect Huawei right now, it’s going to have a domino effect for the entire industry, and will most likely have implications for the next smartphone you buy.

It could also mean the rise of a new mobile operating system that could potentially be a serious challenger to Android.

Featured Image Credit: CIO Bulletin

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Exclusive: Google suspends some business with Huawei after Trump blacklist - source

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Where Google’s Ban Will Hurt Huawei the Most

Who wants an Android phone without the familiar Google services that come with it? Huawei may be about to find out.

As first reported by Reuters , Google will no longer supply Huawei with updates to Android, and it also won’t let the Chinese company keep offering phones with Google apps on them, such as Gmail, Google Maps, YouTube, and the Google Play Store. The move follows the Trump administration’s blacklisting of the company over supposed security threats.

This doesn’t mean Huawei can no longer use Android at all—the operating system is open-source, allowing anyone to use it in their devices. Google’s security updates should still make it through to Huawei phones, as they are distributed through the Android open-source project, albeit more slowly than when Google provides them directly to manufacturers. And Google will continue protecting existing Huawei phones from malware that attackers might be trying to sneak through the Play Store.

For Huawei users' questions regarding our steps to comply w/ the recent US government actions: We assure you while we are complying with all US gov't requirements, services like Google Play & security from Google Play Protect will keep functioning on your existing Huawei device. — Android (@Android) May 20, 2019

But, assuming the ban holds, it does mean Huawei will from now on be blocked from offering Android users the app store and Google services most of them take for granted.

In Huawei’s native China, this isn’t so much of a problem, because Google’s services are blocked there anyway and people are used to local alternatives. But elsewhere, this is a complete disaster for the firm.

European market

At a global level, Huawei has become the second-biggest smartphone maker, behind Samsung (another Android phone firm) and ahead of Apple . Until last week, Huawei was arguably on track to become the top dog, thanks to its success in three markets : China, Europe, and Africa.

In Europe alone, Huawei shipped 13.3 million phones in the last quarter of 2018, which was up more than 55% in year-on-year terms. Europe is Huawei’s second-biggest market, but it’s also a big growth market for certain Chinese rivals such as Xiaomi that also offer decent-performing handsets at low prices. According to Carolina Milanesi, a tech analyst at market research firm Creative Strategies, those rivals now have a golden opportunity to seize more of the market.

This will have a huge impact on #Huawei in Europe the star market outside of China. It will be interesting to see if there are workarounds but as much as Huawei is key to Android gov’t and enterprise market are key to Google. This is a big opportunity for #OnePlus and #XIAOMI https://t.co/Czaf9Y0WoD — Carolina Milanesi (She/Her) (@caro_milanesi) May 19, 2019

Huawei said a couple months back that it has “backup systems” ready to be deployed in the event of Google’s Android no longer being an option. Perhaps this is the moment where a major rival to Android finally appears, birthed out of necessity.

But a new operating system or Google-free Android would be a very tough sell to consumers who are used to finding Gmail and YouTube on their new phones, as well as those who are accustomed to using other Android apps that are only available through Google’s Play Store.

A new operating system and a new app store could in theory offer a similar experience, but it would take years to get app developers on board—right now, they’re busy building apps for iPhones and Android phones that have a proven customer base. So for European and African consumers who might have been considering a Huawei device, it’s far simpler to just pick up a Xiaomi or Nokia Android phone at the same low-to-medium price point.

At Trump’s mercy

Of course, the software question becomes irrelevant if Huawei is unable to make phones at all, due to a lack of parts. With chipmakers such as Qualcomm also having stopped supplying Huawei, again due to U.S. Commerce Department requirements, will manufacturing remain an option?

Huawei reportedly amassed a stockpile of chips to help it weather a ban by the Trump administration, but that supply will only last a few months. After that, Huawei’s in trouble—China’s domestic semiconductor industry is too young to sub for American imports, which is why the U.S.’s previous ban on exports to ZTE, another big Chinese telecoms firm, almost sunk that company.

In the end, ZTE was rescued by President Donald Trump himself , who a year ago brokered a deal with Beijing to save jobs at the company by lifting its component ban. Huawei now finds itself just as much at Trump’s mercy as ZTE was. And if it can’t win his reprieve soon, its ambitions to lead the global mobile market are stone dead.

This article originally referred to the State Department when the reference should have been to the Commerce Department.

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Huawei's response to Google ban raises more questions than answers

Published on May 20, 2019

• HUAWEI says it will still provide security updates to existing devices in the wake of a U.S. trade ban.
• Google cut off ties with HUAWEI as part of a U.S. government order, affecting updates and Google services.
• The Chinese brand hasn’t addressed how the U.S. ban will affect upcoming devices.

Google made headlines yesterday when it reportedly cut business ties with Huawei as part of a U.S. government order.

The news means the Chinese manufacturer loses access to Android system updates , as well as Google services in future devices. HUAWEI has now issued a response to the matter, but it also leaves several questions unanswered at this time.

Read: HiSilicon — What you need to know about HUAWEI’s chip design unit

“HUAWEI will continue to provide security updates and after-sales services to all existing HUAWEI and HONOR smartphone and tablet products, covering those that have been sold and that are still in stock globally,” the company said in an emailed statement to Android Authority .

“We will continue to build a safe and sustainable software ecosystem, in order to provide the best experience for all users globally,” it added. Will this software ecosystem include HUAWEI’s plan B operating system that it’s been working on over the years? This is one of several unanswered questions in the wake of the statement.

What happens now?

The firm clearly seeks to assure current HUAWEI device owners that their phones are going to be fine for now. The sentiment was also echoed by an earlier Google tweet , confirming that Google Play services and Play Protect will still work on existing devices.

But HUAWEI’s statement also raises the question of how the company will be rolling out security patches without Google’s help. Manufacturers can indeed gain access to some security fixes via the Android Open Source Project (AOSP). This route might result in more complications for HUAWEI though, owing to the Google-backed certification process that’s required for updates.

The manufacturer’s statement doesn’t address the issue of Android version updates either. Will the firm leave existing devices on the same Android version until this issue is cleared up, or could it update to its own operating system and lose Google access?

HUAWEI also confirmed that its HONOR 20 launch event, set for May 21 in London, will proceed as planned. But the statement doesn’t clarify how upcoming phones like these will be affected by the ban.

NEXT: Intel, Qualcomm join Google in cutting off business with HUAWEI

What does Google’s decision to ban Huawei from Android mean for the Chinese tech giant?

U.S. tech giant Google banned Huawei from its Android Operating Platform. What are the implications of this tech cold war?

Google’s decision to pull Huawei’s Android license is a significant setback for the Chinese company.

The decision will force the company to use open-source operating systems instead of Google’s proprietary system. This could cause them problems in competing with Samsung and Apple as well. However, they still have a chance since many smartphone users are switching over to alternative platforms such as Windows Phone and Firefox O.S. due mainly to privacy concerns, which are not exclusive only for those two companies. In this article, we look at the significance of Huawei’s ban and go deeper into the US-China tech war and the global consequences of these two giants going against each other.

Why did Google ban Huawei ?

Huawei was banned from Google’s Android operating system because of spying concerns. The company has been accused of installing hardware on its devices that could be used to spy or intercept data, which would violate U.S. privacy laws and undermine the security at stake in our cyber world. There were allegations that they installed “back doors” into their products for espionage purposes. Some analysts believe it is retaliation for not supporting America’s trade war with China. Others speculate the ban stems back to accusations dating as far ago as 2010 about Huawei violating sanctions against Iran & Sudan by selling telecom equipment despite being subject to an export restriction placed on them by Treasury Department officials.

The U.S. and China are locked in a tech war

The U.S. and China are duking it out for a technological lead.

The world’s largest spending on Research & Development is looking to maintain its position as the innovation engine of this century. Meanwhile, Beijing wants to become more dominant in fields like artificial intelligence (A.I.). The U.S. is struggling to keep pace with China in the tech industry.

The U.S., which used to lead this field by leaps and bounds until recently, now finds itself lagging behind its economic adversary’s advancements at an alarming rate of catch up. It would appear that America has lost sight of what it needs most. People can invent new ways through innovation alone instead of relying on other countries like Russia or Chinese entrepreneurs who have made their country into one world centre for A.I. research development. With the likes of Obama’s former cyber security advisor Melissa Hathaway warning Americans about how vital cybersecurity will be in the years to come, there’s a genuine possibility that America may need to rely more directly on its own scientists and engineers.

“U.S. tech firms as well as the U.S. government engage in a great deal of posturing, stand-offs and embargos surrounding Chinese technology companies. This was evident with Tik-Tok’s transition to Microsoft ownership amid Donald Trump’s threats of total shut down in the United States. We are now seeing war being waged on Huawei, an already much maligned and controversial organisation in the eyes of western media outlets. There is absolutley no doubt the U.S. views Chinese tech with scepticism, but also equally as a threat. A threat not to their own citizens and their privacy.. but also to their economy as China eyes domination in all things technology” Matthew Nixon , Analytics Director @ Molzana

Chinese tech companies are investing billions into new technologies, including A.I.

In 2016, China’s A.I. market reached $2.6 billion and was expected to reach $5.4 billion by 2020.

With such a rapid growth rate in artificial intelligence, Chinese tech companies are investing billions into new technologies, including driverless cars and robotics, increasing their focus on health care technology and cyber security systems for industries like power plants or financial institutions. With so many technological innovations happening across every industry at this very moment with China leading the way – it should come as no surprise that they have made investments totalling over 16% more than European countries last year ($871 million). Demonstrating just how high-tech a future we will be living in once these advancements take off! Recent investments have been made in new technologies, including artificial intelligence. The investment trend is a natural response to the growing number of tech companies that are investing billions into A.I. The latest company to announce its interest in this area was Tencent, with its $2 billion pledge towards research and development for intelligent robots.

Does the U.S. still have a technological edge over China?

In the era of globalisation, it’s no surprise that countries worldwide are vying for supremacy in science and technology. The United States is one such country with its Silicon Valley to rival Beijing or Shanghai – but does this competitive landscape also mean an intelligent race between economies across borders? Without much debate, many would say yes. But is this really the case?

Why the U.S. should be concerned about losing its competitive advantage to China

At a time when the U.S. is already struggling to maintain its competitive edge, China’s economy has been growing at an exponential rate. This means they’re poised to overtake America as the world leader in many industries like manufacturing and technology. But what does this mean for the future?

The implications are potentially detrimental to the US economy, as such a tech cold war is likely to continue.

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