Huawei may soon get access to Google's Services

Chinese telecommunication giant Huawei may have seen a strong third quarter in 2019, but that can be attributed to the increase of smartphone sales in its home market of China.

However, smartphone sales have slumped in other markets after Huawei smartphones were barred access to Google’s Mobile Services.

The Trump administration prohibited US companies from trading hardware and software with Huawei, leading to losses on both sides. However, earlier in July, the US Commerce Department announced a workaround the issue. The plan announced would involve providing special licenses to local tech companies wishing to maintain business ties with Huawei.

The licenses would only cover components that do not pose a threat to security. Over 130 US companies showed a keen interest in doing business with Huawei by applying for certifications. And according to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, that number has since doubled, and the licenses would be issued “very shortly”. Google is among the 260 applicants and is arguably the most important of the lot.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Ross said; “Remember too with entity lists there’s a presumption of denial. So the safe thing for these companies would be to assume denial, even though we will obviously approve quite a few of them.”

While not all applications may be given the green light, giving Huawei access to Google Services hardly seems like a threat to national security. Despite its top-tier spec sheet, the Mate 30 series hasn’t faired well in markets outside China because of the lack of Google Services. However, if Google is issued a special license, Huawei will once again get access to Google’s Mobile Services. And, while there’s no time-frame, this is undoubtedly a positive development in Huawei’s ban saga.