One month ago the United States banned all US based companies from working with the Chinese manufacturer, Huawei. This story made headlines, wondering what Huawei will do without the ability to work with a large selection of its suppliers, especially Google, which licensed it's Operating System, Android, to Huawei. After one month there have been more updates on the Huawei situation including the Chinese manufacturer having to halt production. But after all this time,things may be slightly starting to look up for Huawei.
It all starts in 2012, when Huawei started to develop their own OS. It may seem strange that the operating system started nearly 7 years before the ban, but Huawei wanted to be prepared, and didn't want their fate to be in the hands of Android. The operation was secretly known as Ark OS. And now it is almost ready to launch, possibly even this fall. Huawei's OS will be known as Huawei Oak OS and HongMeng OS in China. And according to Huawei, it could possibly be 60% faster than Android. According to job listings, Oak OS will have 5G and Augmented Reality.
Huawei's OS will also not be exclusive. Reportedly, Oppo, Vivo, and Xiaomi are testing HongMeng OS. Making the top four major smartphone manufacturers in China, the largest country in the world, run on Huawei's OS. And with that, one third of the smartphones in the world are running on HongMeng or Oak OS. All that really means is that Huawei will have now established their main source of revenue. And with one third of the market now used up, that leaves us with three main operating systems in the world. Android, iOS, and Oak OS.
And that means two things. Consumers are getting a better product overall, even if they still use an Android or an iPhone. Competition breeds innovation. So we will see Google and Apple continue to work harder to deliver the consumers a better product at a better price.
However, that also means that American based companies are losing out on more market share. Especially Google. They have dominated the OS space for a while now, and with the added competition. That means less revenue and more job cuts. That is why Google is going to the US government making their case to allow Huawei to run on Android. Stating that instead of stopping a security risk, they might be creating one. And that without Google's security updates, Huawei devices are vulnerable to malware. And even on a Samsung phone or an iPhone, if you sent a text to someone using a Huawei device, the senders text could also be infected. It's unknown if this would actually happen, it's just the argument that Google is making.
This all boils down to three options in my opinion. Google's argument wins over the US government, Huawei is unbanned and continues to run on Android. Huawei signs a no-spy deal, locking up their devices so that no back-door could be used. Or three, Huawei continues with Oak OS.
Either way things seem to be looking up for Huawei. They recently signed a deal with Russia to first test and bring 5G to the country (after China of course). And Huawei's VP recently did an interview with FOX Business, describing what a 5G future could look like. Stating, “5G will add 3.5 trillion U.S. dollars to the global economy, will create 22 million new jobs worldwide”. “As automated manufacturing robots use 5G to control the automated manufacturing…makes them more efficient because you can change your manufacturing structure in real time,” he said. Huawei envisions a future where wireless technology creates so-called “smart cities” where 5G transmissions are stored indoors at concert venues, retail stores and outdoors in street lampposts. 5G will be able to deliver up data speeds of up to 10 gigabytes per second at real-time -- fast enough to download a high-definition movie in just two seconds to your mobile phone, Kelly said. The Huawei executive added that 5G will give consumers the capability to charge electric scooters, use electric sensors on kids’ backpacks for tracking and even pre-select parking spaces before arriving at a local shopping mall" (FOX Business).
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