As a result of the recent US ban on Huawei telecommunications products, Facebook has decided that the company “is no longer allowing preinstallation of its apps on Huawei phones.” The measure does not impact people who already own a Huawei smartphone, but is nevertheless a significant setback for the Chinese tech giant, as it will no longer be able to sell phones that have highly popular apps like Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram preinstalled.
Huawei is currently the second biggest smartphone producer after Samsung, and the company was aiming to clinch the top spot by the end of next year. However, due to the US blacklisting, its smartphone sales are bound to suffer. So instead of beating Samsung to become the top seller, it is likely the company will actually lose the battle for second place to Apple soon.
Last month, US President Donald Trump declared a national emergency over telecom threats, thereby enabling the US government to extend its ban on Huawei technology to the private sector. The US considers Huawei products to be a security threat, because the firm may provide the Chinese government with access to its data and systems, which would enable Beijing to spy on US federal agencies and manipulate their networks. Both Huawei and the Chinese government have consistently denied allegations of cyber espionage.
Read more: Blacklisted Huawei Loses Facebook, Instagram And WhatsApp Preinstalled Apps