2019 was definitely not Huawei’s year but the company seems to be starting to see a future, despite the US blacklist that barrs it from using Google functionality.
Dutch company TomTom, a big name in map technology in Europe, has announced a deal with Huawei.
The deal means that, going forward, Huawei phones will use TomTom maps and navigational services instead of Google Maps.
As Huawei is barred from using US-made Android-based services in their phones going forward, the company was forced to build its own operating system and strike new partnerships in order to offer the features other smartphone vendors do.
According to Reuters, the TomTom-Huawei deal was closed “some time ago but had not been made public by the company” so Huawei might have other similar partnerships for other essential smartphone functionalities.
Back in October, the company did admit that life outside of the US and Google’s ecosystem was not easy, saying that the company could “continue to use the Android platform, since it is open-source” but that “we cannot use the services that help apps run on it”.
Meanwhile, US regulators are still attacking the company left and right.
Just last week, a US Deputy National Security Adviser called using Huawei 5G technology “nothing short than madness” and tried to convince the UK to ban Huawei for security risks as well.
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