US Companies to Receive a License for Working with Huawei

After months of suspense and speculation, it appears that the collaboration between the US companies and Huawei will not see as strong an impact due to the US/China trade war as many have originally expected it to.

Trump about to throw Huawei a surprise lifeline, report says https://t.co/gsxqQkaiLN pic.twitter.com/M5SfMrFSE5

— Forbes (@Forbes) November 15, 2019

According to recent reports, the Trump administration will extend the license that allows US-based firms to keep collaborating with China’s Huawei. The decision comes after six months of suspense after the US Commerce Department added the company to its list of entities that American firms should not collaborate with without obtaining special permission.

The Fear of Huawei

The original decision came in light of the US/China trade war, as well as because of fears that Chinese intelligence may be using Huawei technology for spying on US citizens. The original decision did not ban Huawei’s existing customers instantly, and the US Commerce Department even extended temporary licenses for such firms. This included businesses such as rural telecoms and smartphone users that required Huawei equipment in order to function. However, the US did also announce that such firms should find alternative tech providers and that they will even receive assistance in doing so. Now, the Trump administration announced the extension of the license, this time for an unknown length. The decision also comes at just the right time, considering that the last extension is set to expire in about a week.

Still No Total Ban on Working With Huawei

Introducing a total ban on collaborations with Huawei would have interrupted numerous major companies, one of which is also Google itself, due to its collaboration with Huawei that allows the Chinese firm to use Google’s Android OS. In the case of a total ban, the collaboration interruption would have affected every Huawei user around the world. When a recent announcement has stated that some firms might receive special licenses to keep collaborating with Huawei, many expected Google to be among the first ones to obtain it. Now, however, it appears that such licenses would not be necessary, at least until the new extension expires. Even so, many are hoping that the two countries would manage to negotiate a truce and find common ground that would put a stop to the conflict and prevent further problems of this kind. What do you think about the Trump administration’s decision to allow an extension of collaboration licenses? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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