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President Trump yesterday signed a defense funding bill that included a sweeping ban on the US government using technology supplied by Chinese telecommunications giants ZTE and Huawei. The bill also includes a narrower ban on using surveillance gear provided by Chinese companies Hytera Communications, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology, or Dahua Technology for national security applications.
The legislation directs federal agencies to stop using the Chinese-made hardware within two years. If that proves impractical, an agency can apply for a waiver to permit a longer phase-out period.
Obviously, being banned from selling to the US government is a significant blow to these companies. But overall the bill actually represents something of a reprieve for ZTE. Back in June, the US Senate passed a version of the bill that would have re-imposed an export ban that would have been a de facto death sentence for ZTE because ZTE is heavily dependent on components like Qualcomm chips and Google's Android operating system.
Previously: Verizon Cancels Plans to Sell Huawei Phone Due to U.S. Government Pressure
U.S. Intelligence Agency Heads Warn Against Using Huawei and ZTE Products
The U.S. Intelligence Community's Demonization of Huawei Remains Highly Hypocritical
Huawei CEO Still Committed to the U.S. Market
Rural Wireless Association Opposes U.S. Government Ban on Huawei and ZTE Equipment
ZTE Suspends Operations Due to U.S. Ban (UPDATED)
(Score: 2) by driverless on Thursday August 16 2018, @12:55AM (1 child)
It's also a huge foot-shoot in terms of what video gear to USG will now end up with. Dahua and Hikvision are the world's largest manufacturers of surveillance camera gear, and they make some pretty decent kit. So what the decree is saying is that US agencies now have to buy from dubious third-party vendors instead of the major players with established track records.
(Score: 2) by driverless on Thursday August 16 2018, @01:00AM
Sorry, forgot the hashtag for banning mainstream gear like Dahua and Hikvision: #MDubiousChineseManufactersGA!