Today the traditional Huawei Christmas lunch with the press was held in Madrid. During it, Tony Jin Yong, CEO of Huawei in Spain and Portugal, answered all the questions raised by the assistants, even the most uncomfortable ones. Here is a summary of their most important statements.
Could you tell us how the revenues of Huawei’s three most important divisions have been?
The results are going well, with a growth forecast of more than 20% for this year. In Consumption, the figures are maintained, while in Companies we expect to have greater growth, with divisions such as Solar growing up to five times. We are talking about healthy accounts based on a continuous commitment to innovation.
How has the Consumer Market share varied from 2018 to 2019?
The result is very similar between 2018 and 2019. In both years Huawei has been above 20%. At the end of last year, one could speak of 25% and, at the beginning of this, 27%. The international situation has had an impact on this, but even so Huawei maintains a relevant and significant position in the market. Our commitment is focused on continuing to offer a better user experience and offer more options and alternatives.
What news is there regarding the alleged veto of Huawei by the Spanish Ministry of Defense?
Huawei has not received any type of notification about restrictions from the Ministry of Defense in relation to the use of any of its mobile devices. Huawei has not been vetoed by the Ministry of Defense. This fact will not have a significant effect and, for our part, we have very positive examples of our close collaboration with the Government, such as the recent presentation of the 5G pilot project in Seville with Vodafone, which is a project funded by Red.es, or the collaboration we have made with the Civil Guard in the celebration of its 175th anniversary, and with the main telemarketers in our country.
Would you say then that things are going well in Spain?
We have a long experience in Spain and we are part of society, which has recognized our products and services, as well as our improvements and innovations. The year 2019 has been a complex year, but, in this period, we appreciate your support, proactively contacting us when events have occurred with the aim of telling people the truth.
How will Huawei get out of the trade crisis with the United States? What is the perception from within?
I can say that the company is calm and that it has even strengthened the confidence and its development capacity for the future. We are the only company in the world capable of overcoming a situation of this type. We have a network of 3 billion consumers and that is a great responsibility for us, which means a constant effort in innovation and development to offer the best service thanks to our powerful capabilities. The biggest challenges are in the short term and we are confident of the bright future that we will be able to offer our partners and customers.
What is your assessment of the veto of the United States, which is extended again for another three months?
Recent events have not had a significant impact on Huawei’s business. The relationship between Huawei and the operators has not been conditioned by these actions. We are a private company, oblivious to political situations, and our intentions are based, above all, on having our own capabilities to bring innovation to our clients, work for education, cybersecurity and inclusion. We do our best and forget about the rest.
How dependent are Huawei’s products right now on components made by North American companies?
We are independent from the USA in the area of telecommunications networks. In the consumer area, until a few months ago our smartphones had 1% American components, but today they depend on 0% components manufactured in the United States. Our intention is to continue working together with Google for the operating system, and if they let us we will continue to buy components and software. But if they do not allow us, we are prepared to implement our own operating system.
In the event that the ban continues and Huawei has to sell products without Google, do you think that Huawei’s operating system will be able to compete with Google in capabilities, and especially in terms of user preference?
We are currently selling smartphones like the Mate 30 Pro. This “smartphone” does not have Google services pre-installed, but the Huawei EMUI 10 interface on Android Open Source. It is very difficult to predict how the market will respond. We will continue working to improve the ecosystem. This is why our developer incentive plan is so important, to inspire developers and support us. Currently in Europe we have no alternative, and that is not something that is built in a few months, but in several years. In the future we will have more options available to users.
Will we have a Huawei terminal with its own operating system next year?
It could be the next P40, which will be the flagship terminal that we will launch in March 2020. However, we do not yet know when our operating system will be available for new devices.
