TECH

Nokia and Ericsson may leave Huawei behind in Europe

According to an internal note released today by the GSMA, European operators may need up to 18 months to deploy the 5G mobile telecommunications network if they can not use technology from Huawei, the Chinese company that is most advanced in this type of services.
Recently, the US government has banned US companies from using equipment from Huawei and has threatened several European countries to stop sharing military and security information if China's technology is authorized, alleging espionage risks to the Beijing government.
The World Association of Operators estimates that losses to European operators could reach 55 billion euros due to the delay in the development of the 5G network, as Huawei's competitors are unable to provide the necessary equipment in a timely manner.
The internal note said that the Swedish company Ericsson, Finnish Nokia, South Korean Samsung or even China's ZTE, Huawei's direct competitors in the 5G race, will not be able to meet the immediate needs of the European market.
According to several European operators, Huawei is 12-18 months ahead of the competition in the development of 5G network technology.
By the end of 2018, Huawei had a 28% share of the network equipment market in Europe, ahead of Nokia and Ericsson, both with about 25% each, while ZTE controlled about 10% of the market.
With the decision of the US President Donald Trump's government, which will come into force within three months, Huawei has been in crisis because of dependence on US chips for its equipment, experts say.
Following the announcement of the US sanctions, several companies distanced themselves from Huawei, including Google, whose Android system manages most smartphones worldwide.
For the time being, European countries have not taken a formal stance in favor of banning Huawei equipment on 5G networks, although some operators, such as EE in the UK, have announced they will choose to move forward without Chinese equipment.
In Portugal, in February, Washington sent a delegation to Lisbon to discuss security issues on mobile networks.
At that time, the US ambassador in Lisbon warned the Government led by António Costa that the use of Huawi equipment could affect US relations with Portugal within NATO. A. L.