— Huawei India (@HuaweiIndia) May 22, 2019 Earlier: Google has announced that they will suspend business with Huawei which includes the transfer of hardware, software and technical services. This ban comes after the Trump government in the US had put Huawei on the blacklist. According to a report by Reuters citing a source familiar with the matter, the Chinese tech giant will lose access to Google‘s Android operating system and its services. Huawei will only be able to use those services that are available via open source licensing.
How it will impact current Huawei phones?
A Google spokesperson confirming the report by Reuters said that holders of current Huawei smartphones will continue to be able to use and download Google apps. They will also get updates provided by Google. However, future Huawei smartphones will lose access to popular Google services including the Play Store, Gmail, and YouTube apps. Huawei will still have access to the Android operating system through the open source license also known as Android Open Source Project (AOSP). So, in future Huawei smartphones, only Popular Google apps such as Gmail, YouTube that are available via Play Store will disappear. These services are not covered by the open source license and using them requires a commercial agreement with Google.
Will it affect the Huawei smartphones in India?
The suspension could affect Huawei’s smartphone business everywhere outside China as China doesn’t use Google services. However, users of existing Huawei smartphones in India will continue to have access to the Play Store and will also be able to download app updates by Google.
What does Huawei say about this?
Huawei, in its official statement, 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 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.” There are also reports that Huawei has already prepared a plan by developing its own operating system in case it is blocked from using Google services. The company has told the media that some of this technology is already being used in homeland China. It will be interesting to see if Huawei launches next phones with its own operating system.
