Google Suspends Business With Huawei After Trump Blacklist

Huawei has just been dealt with a massive blow. Alphabet Inc’s Google has just suspended some businesses with the Chinese telecommunications giant after the U.S. government added the company to its trades blacklist. Huawei was only added by the Trump administration on the list on Thursday, May 16, but the company immediately suffered the effects.

Google has reportedly suspended any business with Huawei that requires the transfer of hardware, software and technical services. However, this does not include services that are publicly available via open source licensing. In addition to that, current Huawei smartphone holders with Google apps may continue to use and download app updates provided by Google.

Huawei smartphone users will have limited access to Google services.

Although Huawei was added to the Trump administration’s trades blacklist last week, it was only recently that Google cut certain ties with the company. A spokesperson from Google stated that they needed to comply immediately.

“We are complying with the order and reviewing the implications,” the spokesperson said. “For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices.”

But how will the suspension affect Huawei? For one, the company will immediately lose access to any updates of Google’s Android operating system. Additionally, future Huawei smartphones that run on Android will lose access to popular services, including the Google Play Store as well as Gmail and YouTube apps. Unfortunately, this could mean certain users will be forced to change devices to continue accessing Google’s services.

Google is only one of the first companies to suspend business with Huawei.

The suspension is certainly a devastating blow but Huawei is currently trying to analyze how it will affect the global supply chain. It is also unclear whether the company will be able to operate without the help of the United States.