Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei’s revenue is likely to reduce to around $700-800 million from $1.2 billion in 2017
After the US and Australia blocked Huawei, ZTE, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has decided to bar Huawei and ZTE from trials to develop 5G use cases for India. Cisco, Samsung, Ericsson and Nokia are some of the telecom giants that have made it to DoT’s list of companies for the partnership in 5G trials.
Telecom secretary, Aruna Sundarajan said that DoT had received affirmation from the companies in the involvement of rolling out the next generation technology. She cited security reasons behind the exclusion of the Chinese telecom equipment makers.
Huawei-ZTE in India
Earlier, Huawei and ZTE, reportedly, faced trouble over security concerns in 2010 in India. They were under suspicion of using a technology designed to spy into sensitive communication. The ban, however, was lifted after companies agreed to adopt stringent rules. While ZTE is yet to comment on the issue, Huawei, in a statement, released on Thursday, said that it had reached out to DoT and concerned government officials, adding that the government had been very supportive and appreciative of its path-breaking technologies and solutions. The company was confident to win the collaboration and contribute to the 5G ecosystem in India if it presented its 5G technology.
As per reports, Huawei has been facing pressure on the revenue front in India. It slumped to 40% in revenue this year and had stopped assembling its products out of its local plants. The revenue is likely to be reduced to around $700-800 million this year from $1.2 billion in 2017. DoT’s decision to exclude the company may add on to the pressure.
The Telecom secretary said that DoT would be able to showcase 5G use cases by early 2019. DoT has initiated a high-level task force that has recommendations on the standards, spectrum, skills and easy 5G roll-outs and it aims to issue the services by 2020.
Nitin Bansal, Ericsson India managing director, said that it plans to contribute to the development of the 5G ecosystem in India through its partnership by 2020.
