Google’s restriction of business ties with Huawei, the world’s No 2 smartphone maker, could obliterate demand for the Chinese company’s devices overseas and give market leader Samsung a leg up in cementing its lead in Android devices.
Google’s move to curtail access to its Android operating system – in response to Huawei being placed on a US trade blacklist – means that the Shenzhen-based company will no longer be able to run Google’s popular apps and services such as Gmail, YouTube or its Google Play app store, on future Huawei devices.