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Huawei CEO would like Google to submit its apps on Huawei’s AppGallery store

By Aiko Tanaka
1 min read
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Huawei just released its new flagship line, the P40 series, and with it promised some appealing camera-related features for smartphone photography. Unfortunately for Huawei though, last year, the US government added the China-based company to a trade blacklist, making the company unable to do business with American companies and therefore, there are no Google apps on its new flagship devices.

However, Huawei’s CEO, Eric Xu, stated that the company hopes Google’s apps would be available in the AppGallery Store, Huawei’s version of the Google Play Store. He compared it with the case of Apple’s App Store, where Google submits its apps for Apple’s approval. If Google submits its apps on the AppGallery, this could make them available for download on Huawei smartphones.

Although the lack of Google apps on Huawei smartphones might not be a problem for the company’s home market, given the fact that Google apps are prohibited in China, this seems like a big minus for international customers. Eric Xu said that the blacklist caused Huawei a $10 billion benefit shortfall for 2019, meaning the company’s revenue was $10 billion lower than its target.

Last month, Google submitted a request for permission to work with Huawei, but it can take quite some time for such procedures to be completed, even if the US government was to approve Google’s request. For now, there is no prospect that Google’s apps will come pre-installed on Huawei smartphones in the near future.

Questions & Answers

Q.

Why are Google apps not available on Huawei's new P40 series smartphones?

A.

The US government added Huawei to a trade blacklist last year. This prevents the China-based company from doing business with American companies, including Google, so its apps are unavailable.

Q.

How has the US trade blacklist affected Huawei financially?

A.

The blacklist caused Huawei a $10 billion benefit shortfall for 2019. This means the company's revenue was $10 billion lower than its original target for that year.

Q.

Is there any possibility of Google apps becoming available on Huawei phones in the future?

A.

Google submitted a request for permission to work with Huawei last month. If the US government approves this, it could make Google's apps available in Huawei's AppGallery, but it may take time.

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