Huawei is no longer focused on selling their handsets in the US market, and for good reason too. They took quite a beating when congress raised concerns about security with the Chinese manufacturers and how their devices handled sensitive information.
Huawei’s Chief Technology Officer, Li Sanqi spoke up about the company’s newfound direction.
“Apparently, due to whatever the geopolitical reasons, we are not focusing on the U.S. market.”
In October of last year, a US congressional committee advised telecom companies to stay away from Huawei’s products. The company has some superficial ties to the Chinese government. Of course, this was quite a blow to Huawei as they’ve been desperately trying to get their handsets into the hands of US consumers for years now. Just when they finally got some attention, things took a turn for the worst it seems.
The US lawmakers are concerned that Huawei’s products will be used by China, to engage in cyberespionage against American citizens.
Huawei clearly denies such allegations, and claims that their products are safe to use, even here in the US. For now though, they’re moving their focus away. It certainly seems like the right action until things cool down.
“We today face reality. We will focus on the rest of the world, which is reasonably big enough and is growing significantly.”
He’s not lying either. Huawei is doing extremely well in China, where they’ve signed on more than a billion mobile phone subscribers. They’re also planned to launch new 4G networks in the region later this year.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to get into the U.S. market. Thirty percent, it’s a high-value market.”
Sanqi is still excited to see growth for his company in other parts of the world, despite shortcomings in the US. Maybe sometime in the future Huawei’s handsets will ultimately make it onto retail shelves in the US. For now, Huawei is moving on to other endeavors, or at least projects in other parts of the world.
It’s a shame too because Huawei does have some pretty fascinating stuff like the Ascend Mate. I still want one.
Via: PCWorld