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China Businesses Government Privacy Security United States

Huawei To Back Off US Market Amid Rising Tensions (nytimes.com) 91

Posted by BeauHD from the reverse-course dept.
Huawei is reportedly going to give up on selling its products and services in the United States (Warning: source may be paywalled; alternative source) due to Washington's accusations that the company has ties to the Chinese government. The change in tactics comes a week after the company laid off five American employees, including its biggest American lobbyist. The New York Times reports: Huawei's tactics are changing as its business prospects in the United States have darkened considerably. On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission voted to proceed with a new rule that could effectively kill off what little business the company has in the United States. Although the proposed rule does not mention Huawei by name, it would block federally subsidized telecommunications carriers from using suppliers deemed to pose a risk to American national security. Huawei's latest moves suggest that it has accepted that its political battles in the United States are not ones it is likely to win. "Some things cannot change their course according to our wishes," Eric Xu, Huawei's deputy chairman, said at the company's annual meeting with analysts on Tuesday. "With some things, when you let them go, you actually feel more at ease."
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Huawei To Back Off US Market Amid Rising Tensions More

Huawei To Back Off US Market Amid Rising Tensions

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  • Yeah... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Parker Lewis ( 999165 ) on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @06:25AM (#56456989)
    "suppliers deemed to pose a risk to American national security" == "suppliers do not accept to sell products with NSA backdoors"

    • Re:Yeah... (Score:4, Insightful)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @06:34AM (#56456997) Homepage Journal

      Seems very bad for trade too. There are two ways to address the trade imbalance with China: reduce overall trade until both sides are down to the same level, or build up US exports to match Chinese imports. It seems like, as usual, this trade war is pushing for the first option.

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by sinij ( 911942 )
        More trade is not always automatically better. For example, China due to ability to centrally plan, lax labor standards, nonexistent environmental regulations, can produce trade goods at a loss for decades. At that point our own capacity to produce similar goods is lost and we become a captive market dominated by foreign state-aligned monopoly.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

          Sure, but there are better ways to solve those issues. For example, the EU introduces the RoHS rules that limited the amount of harmful substances in products, and started considering carbon emissions from factories in China making products for EU companies. That helped clean up China quite a bit, and the Chinese government is very receptive to such measures because it too is trying hard to improve the environment there.

          If you just start a trade war it will only result in more tariffs being put on US produc

      • There are two ways to address the trade imbalance with China: reduce overall trade until both sides are down to the same level, or build up US exports to match Chinese imports.

        You can't "build up" US exports because the Chinese are already spending every dollar they get their hands on, just not on US exports of goods and services. What are they spending their dollars on? US treasury bills and US investments. And that's a system that American politicians like because it allows them to buy votes in the US (wi

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

          Well European cars are selling really well in China. It's the biggest growth market by far for companies like BMW, Jaguar and Audi. Japanese manufacturers are making inroads too, despite the history of their two countries.

          Chinese consumers love western brands too. They aren't dumb either, they know that fakes are fake, and value the real thing if they can afford it. Again, it's a rapidly growing market for Prada and Louis Vitton.

          • The EU still has a large trade deficit with China. And, of course, like China, the EU also forcibly redirects money from consumer spending to government investments. That is, the fact that taxes and government spending are about 10-20% higher in the EU than in the US is roughly the equivalent of a 10-20% tariff on US goods. Authoritarian governments like the EU and China can do that sort of thing with impunity; it's not a mark of quality of good government.

            Of course, the US plays along with its massive borr

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

              The EU authoritarian? Okay buddy.

              In any case, the EU certainly protects consumers a lot more than the US. That's one of the major reasons why US companies find it so hard to sell stuff here, and the same in Japan where they can't meet the automotive emissions standards, for example.

              • In any case, the EU certainly protects consumers a lot more than the US.

                Translation: "The EU has a lot of trade barriers."

                That's one of the major reasons why US companies find it so hard to sell stuff here, and the same in Japan where they can't meet the automotive emissions standards, for example.

                US standards are much stricter when it comes to NOx and particulates [longtailpipe.com] (the stuff that you need to protect consumers from), while being less strict when it comes to carbon emissions (irrelevant to consumer protecti

    • Re:Yeah... (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @06:41AM (#56457007)

      I don't think Huawei would have let this go so easily if that were the reason. They'd either have inserted the backdoor like presumably the other suppliers, or they'd have let the public know that the NSA wanted them to insert a backdoor into their products but that they refused to do so. I think it's more likely that some of Huawei's products contain PRC backdoors and that they aren't prepared (or legally able) to remove them.

      • China is still an authoritarian communist regime.

        Every fucking company in China is subject top the whims of the government. What fucking morons believe this NOT to be so?

      • But there are numerous Chinese OEM's selling phones in the US who aren't receiving the same harassment Huawei is. The three letter agencies are all pointing to the fact Huawei's founder (Ren Zhengfei) is a former People's Liberation Army officer. I can understand a group that lives off of cloak-&-dagger are suspicious but I gotta say...I have had my Mate 9 for a year and it has been the best smart phone experience I've ever had.

    • Re:Yeah... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by sg_oneill ( 159032 ) on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @06:50AM (#56457029)

      "suppliers deemed to pose a risk to American national security" == "suppliers do not accept to sell products with NSA backdoors"

      Huwai and the Chinese govt probably couldnt give a damn about the NSA spying on american citizens anymore than the american govt caring about china spying on chinese citizens. Its only when it crosses the border do govts get anxious.

      None of the actors here actually give one knob of goatshit about our rights.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by ColdBoot ( 89397 )

      "suppliers deemed to pose a risk to American national security" == "suppliers do not accept to sell products with NSA backdoors"

      or restated, the Chinese will do to us what we do to them

    • As opposed to Chinese government backdoors? No thanks.

    • For US products it's better to have NSA backdoors than Chinese backdoors. I'd rather have neither of course, but as little as alphabet agencies may be our friends, the most a foreign government is capable of being is an ally, and China isn't even that.
      • I don't live in USA, so both are foreign agencies spying in my devices. Anyway, doesn't matter, as having a backdoor does it mean anyone (mainly hackers) will be able to use the same backdoor.

  • So no more Cisco gear? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by drinkypoo ( 153816 ) <drink@hyperlogos.org> on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @06:57AM (#56457045) Homepage Journal

    Although the proposed rule does not mention Huawei by name, it would block federally subsidized telecommunications carriers from using suppliers deemed to pose a risk to American national security.

    Oh yeah? So that means they're going to stop buying equipment from Cisco [infoworld.com], right?

  • Huawei's market share in the US is microscopic at best. Most carriers don't offer their products and Congress has recommended against working with them for years. With the FTC looking to block subsidized carriers from working with them, the US market simply isn't worth the effort and expense anymore.

    • Huawei's market share in the US is microscopic at best. Most carriers don't offer their products and Congress has recommended against working with them for years. With the FTC looking to block subsidized carriers from working with them, the US market simply isn't worth the effort and expense anymore.

      Who cares about 'facts' when this plays well with the base. Just like those steel tariffs the White House justified by citing Chinese steel dumping, China accounts for 2.9 percent of US steel imports, ... but who cares about 'facts', tariffs on China play well with the base. I don't think US politicos, and particularly the ones in charge at the moment, really think much beyond what will 'play well with the base'.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by ledow ( 319597 )

      10% worldwide:

      https://www.statista.com/stati... [statista.com]

      I don't think that's "microscopic" but it's hard to nail down stats for the US on its own.

      That's literally hundreds of millions of devices, though, so I don't think we're talking about something that can just disappear overnight without anyone noticing.

      • Re-read my comment. I said. "Huawei's market share in the US is microscopic" not that their global market share is small.

        Huawei is a successful global company and the US is a microscopic part of their global sales. We don't add enough to their bottom line for them to continue bothering with us if we're just going to keep adding obstacles to prevent them from growing their business here.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by ledow ( 319597 )

          Yes, and it's hard to nail down the stats for the US.

          I read everything from 0.1% to 5% and at those margins of error anything could be true.

          But even 1% isn't insignificant. However, if a company owns 10% of the world market, it makes me wonder why you'd want to exclude them without some incredibly good reason. For example, all the US's European allies are quite happy using their kit.

          It seems to me to be nothing more than hyperbole, while they're using Cisco electronics and Chinese-built Apple devices, etc

    • Well carriers' deals on phones suck now, so I just buy them outright. I have a Huawei phone and it's the best smart phone I've ever had.

    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • paywalled (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Reverend Green ( 4973045 ) on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @07:27AM (#56457103)

    Please stop posting paywalled links. No one here wants to read them. No one here wants paywalled sites to get any traffic.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by atrex ( 4811433 )
      What's worse: a paywalled site getting less traffic or a paywalled site getting adblocked traffic that blocks the poorly implemented paywall?

  • Americans had better get used to paying more. (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Computershack ( 1143409 ) on Wednesday April 18, 2018 @09:40AM (#56457647)
    As more and more companies in China decide its no longer worth selling into the US market that means a lot of cheap consumer gear is going to disappear. Component manufacturers may follow suit. I think the American public is going to be in for a rude awakening about just how much of what they buy comes from China.

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward

      I think the American public is going to be in for a rude awakening about just how much of what they buy comes from China.

      Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, and The Philippines have got us covered.

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Howitzer86 ( 964585 )
      If electronics become too expensive for the average consumer, we'll just keep what we have and buy used from the wealthier folks. Meanwhile, I hope the remaining manufacturers get the message and build things that last longer and are easier to repair.
    • No, most Americans are well aware of how much garbage comes from china. CHina has worked hard to kill off electronic, led, solar, EV, etc manufacturing in the west. That includes in Europe. The best thing that can happen is that CHina either start playing by WTO rules, OR we bring back manufacturing, with lots of automation, to the west.
    • Good. Fuck the American public. They need to learn the real cost of things they buy. This is unquestionably a positive change.
    • What good are cheap crap goods if nobody has the money to buy them? This benefits our working class at the expense of our wealthy. Force China to accept our goods at the same rates we tax theirs at. If they won't play fair, fuck them.
  • I'm glad that Kaspersky products are still available off the shelf here in Canada (from an American-owned retailer, no less). Not sure what to think about Huawei though.

  • So, the only winning move is not to play.

    Besides, we get to keep Hawaii, the state out there in the Pacific. Nya nya

  • In this case, this company has hired a few Americans, but prohibited them from owning ANY STOCK IN THE COMPANY. In fact, no westerners are allowed to obtain stock in it.
  • I've had 3. Mate2, 8, 9 Very good phones, EXCELLENT 4,000mAH battery, stable, rock solid. I guess the Apple/Samsung duopoly will continue, and, American consumers will continue to overpay for phones considering most consumers will continue to buy them from carriers, so they can have the newest Apple/Samsung phone, for zero down, no interest payments. I'll bet dollar to doughnuts some k-street money, compliments of Apple/Samsung flowed through the halls of DC, to get them to turn a sour note to Huawei. Sh

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