Facebook is now the latest tech company that has suspended business with Huawei. The social media giant has stopped Huawei from pre-installing its apps to its devices. If you look at it, it could be a good thing following the various ways Facebook apps collect and abuse user data as seen with the data and privacy scandals it is currently facing.
Facebook joins ARM, Intel, and Qualcomm who’ve suspended business with the Chinese tech giant. Facebook told Reuters that its apps on existing Huawei devices will still work and receive updates and only new Huawei devices won’t. come pre-installed with Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram.
Smartphone companies usually partner with popular app companies such as Facebook and Twitter to let their phones come with their pre-installed apps. But this approach has a lot of users pissed since some of these apps can’t be deleted.
@SamsungMobileUS Why am I not able to delete the Facebook app from my S7 Edge? The app is a privacy threat. If I can't delete it, this will be the last Samsung product I ever own. It only allows me to "disable" the app, which i'm sure doesn't fix any of the privacy issues.
— Justin McMurry (@BoutSebm) December 6, 2018
Huawei was granted a 90-day reprieve after Google suspended business with them that gave them back a temporary Android license. Huawei also got allowed to use MicroSD cards in their smartphones after being ejected from the SD Association. The Bluetooth and Wi-Fi associations have also reinstated the company too after snubbing them. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, IEEE has also lifted its ban against Huawei-affiliated scholars after requesting and receiving a “clarification” from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
The apps will however still be available for download from the Google Play store for buyers of current Huawei models that won’t come with the pre-installed apps for the time period until Huawei’s Android license expires this August 19th where Huawei will not have access to Google services such as the Play Store. Google is already negotiating to let this not happen.
If you ask me, this is a good thing.
