Facebook just banned Huawei from pre-installing its apps

As per the latest report by Reuters, Facebook will not allow pre-installation its apps which includes Instagram and WhatsApp on new Huawei smartphones (box packed). This is yet another casualty for Huawei amidst the recent US-China trade war.

However, Huawei users that already have the app installed on their Huawei smartphones will still be able to use Facebook and its other app which includes Instagram and WhatsApp and receive regular updates via PlayStore. Typically all Huawei phones have apps like Facebook, Twitter, and Booking.com, however, after the latest ban, Huawei will not be able to pre-install them on its phones anymore like it usually does.

“Facebook is no longer allowing preinstallation of its apps on Huawei phones… Customers who already have Huawei phones will still be able to use its apps and receive updates. But new Huawei phones will no longer be able to have Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram apps preinstalled, ” a spokesperson from Facebook told Reuters.

Compared to the blows dealt by Huawei regarding the ban by Google in ARM which practically suspended Huawei from using Google services and develop its smartphone chips, this doesn’t come close. So by contrast, the Facebook ban applies to any Huawei phone that has not yet left the company. However, it still holds the fact that Huawei phones are being slowly crippled which will ultimately dent the company’s plan of becoming the number one smartphone manufacturer in the world.

A week ago, a report by South China Morning Post suggested that Huawei was closing some of its global productions owing to poor smartphone sales. However, Huawei refuted these claims and stated that their global production levels were normal, with no notable adjustments in either direction. But, shortly after a second report came from Asian Review which claimed that Huawei has slashed its smartphone sales for the second half of 2019 by 20-30%.

For now, Huawei’s position in the non-Chinese market is unclear, whether the Chinese tech-company decides to halt its production once its own OS has completely developed is a question still unanswered. Let’s see what 2019 has in store for Huawei.