Ever since Google blacklisted Huawei in May following the company’s inclusion on the US entity list, there has been talk and questions on whether the future Huawei releases could bear the Android operating system.
Among the available solutions was the option of building its own OS, to which a step forward was made with the official launch of the Harmony OS done at the 2019 Huawei Developer Conference. However, Huawei was quick to state that the system was not yet ready for use on smartphones – with the first product to bear it being the Honor Vision TV.
With the launch of the Huawei Mate 30 nearing, and the company’s temporary permit recently extended for another quarter, many were confident that the forthcoming smartphone would be an Android make. But this will not be the case!
According to a Reuters report, Google says that the Mate 30 “cannot be sold with licensed Googled apps and services”. This is because the temporary permit offered by the US Government only allows for Android to run on existing Huawei products; an implication that any new product would not be eligible for the service.
This also applies to all other US companies that Huawei deals with. In just this week, the U.S. Commerce Department has received more than 130 applications from companies for licenses to sell U.S. goods to the phone manufacturer, but none have been granted.
It is possible for Google to seek a license to have its apps and services available for the Huawei Mate 30, though the company has not confirmed whether it sent in any application.
A Huawei spokesperson told Reuters that the company “will continue to use the Android OS and ecosystem if the U.S. government allows us to do so. Otherwise, we will continue to develop our own operating system and ecosystem.”
Key to note is that Huawei has been reported to build various alternatives to Google Mobile services, including Map Kit to replace Google Maps and App Gallery to be in the place of the Play Store.
