Huawei No Longer Focused On The U.S. Market [UPDATE: Statement]

Huawei, who was once excited to be bringing more of its smartphones into the United States later this year, has decided to stop focusing its priorities on the U.S market, and instead will focus its efforts on bringing its products to the rest of the world. The company stated that its change in focus is due to "geopolitical reasons". For quite a while now, Huawei has been under fire from the United States, Canada, and even the EU due to allegations that the Chinese government is using its smartphones to spy on other nations.

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Last October, both Huawei and ZTE were under fire from U.S. lawmakers, who claimed that the Chinese government was using these telecommunications companies as a way to spy on the United States. The lawmakers encouraged businesses in the U.S. to avoid purchasing products from these companies, which damaged both companies' revenue streams. Huawei and ZTE both defended their positions, saying that all the allegations were false.

Several sources later stated that the White House found no evidence that Huawei's equipment was being used as espionage tools by the Chinese government. But even so, lawmakers and government officials still believe that Huawei's products are a threat. Canada, which planned on bringing Huawei's smartphones into its government communications network, decided to ban the company's products from being used. A provision was issued to prevent the U.S. government from purchasing Huawei and ZTE's devices, and the EU has intentions of launching an investigation in both companies.

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Huawei states that in the future, it may shift its focus back to the U.S. market, but for now, it'll focus on other, emerging markets. Li Sanqi, Huawei's Chief Technology Officer, stated that the company would love to get into the U.S market, which currently accounts for 30% of the entire world's mobile carrier business, but for now, the company will "focus on the rest of the world, which is reasonably big enough and is growing significantly."

UPDATE: Huawei has release the following statement regarding the situation:

"The anticipated growth of our global carrier network business is primarily from developed markets outside the U.S. The situation in the U.S. is the same today as it was a week ago, a month ago, etc. and the comment that was made reflects the realities of our carrier network business in the U.S.. Simply put, the current U.S. market environment makes it difficult for that market to become a primary revenue source or a key growth area for our carrier network business. Nevertheless, we remain committed to providing quality services for our U.S. customers." – William Plummer, VP, External Affairs at Huawei

[via PC World]

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