Chinese handset maker Huawei just received another blow from a wireless carrier. After the company faced a deal gone dead from AT&T, they are now facing another defeat at the hands of Verizon. According to Bloomberg sources, Verizon is the latest carrier to drop its plans to sell Huawei phones.
Earlier this month, AT&T dropped their support for a deal with Huawei after pressure from the US government over security concerns. Similarly, the US government has been pressuring Verizon to end any and all collaboration with Huawei on standards for a 5G network.
“The next wave of wireless communication has enormous economic and national security implications,” said Michael Wessel of a US-China security review commission. “China’s participation in setting the standards and selling the equipment raises many national security issues that demand strict and prompt attention.”
The biggest reason why US government has been pushing wireless carriers to not deal with Huawei is because of concerns over Chinese spying that has created a significant obstacle in US carriers’ bid to offer 5G services in the country. Huawei wants to bring 5G-capable phones to the US market, but will not have access to the networks here. AT&T and Verizon have both been planning to launch 5G networks this year.
