Suddenly, US telecom is 'not a market that we pay much attention to,' a Huawei official says – which actually makes sense

Craig Matsumoto, Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading

April 23, 2013

1 Min Read
Huawei Gives Up on US Telecom

Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. has officially given up on the U.S. telco market -- or, at least, that's what is implied by the literal wording of one executive's "exasperation." "We are not interested in the U.S. market anymore. Generally speaking, it's not a market that we pay much attention to," said Eric Xu, a Huawei executive vice president, as quoted by Reuters. Xu, speaking at Huawei's annual analyst event in Shenzhen, China, was responding to a question about last year's congressional report that pegged Huawei and ZTE as security risks for U.S. companies. The Financial Times took the statement at face value, while Reuters left room for the possibility that Xu was just being a bit dramatic. Xu's statement doesn't appear to apply to the handset market, where Huawei assumedly still has high hopes in the United States. Reuters reported that Xu didn't respond to a question about that. Why this matters
The U.S. government has made it clear that Huawei's equipment won't be allowed in AT&T or Verizon networks -- which would relegate Huawei and ZTE bit players, at best, in U.S. telecom. For Huawei to give up on the U.S. telecom market, then, would make a lot of sense. Saying so out loud seems a little unusual but is hardly surprising. For more

  • Sprint, Softbank: No Huawei in Our Network

  • Clearwire Will Keep Using Huawei

  • Huawei Lays Off 100 in U.S.

  • Huawei Hits Back

  • U.S. vs. Huawei/ZTE: The Verdict

— Craig Matsumoto, Managing Editor, Light Reading

About the Author(s)

Craig Matsumoto

Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading

Yes, THAT Craig Matsumoto – who used to be at Light Reading from 2002 until 2013 and then went away and did other stuff and now HE'S BACK! As Editor-in-Chief. Go Craig!!

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