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Huawei plans to keep its crippled smartphone business afloat with Android bloatware, new reports indicate. The move seeks to remedy the unenviable position wherein Huawei found itself last year. Huawei’s said to have presented that bold plan to its Eastern European partners earlier this week.
The company’s Western ambitions have been declining ever since the U.S. forbade Google from licensing its proprietary Android tech to Huawei. Consumers outside of China, where Google Mobile Services are largely unavailable, consider apps like Play Store inseparable from Android itself.
The firm has now drafted a robust software plan to alleviate the effects of those limitations. In essence, Huawei plans to pre-load its future Android devices with a much wider variety of third-party apps. The idea is to minimize the immediate consumer need for Play Store and other Google solutions.
More specifically, the Shenzen-based giant is planning to pre-install around 70 third-party Android apps on its devices. The exact list will depend on the market as the firm is understandably looking at most popular mobile software in every region.
Besides obvious picks such as WhatsApp and Snapchat, Huawei is reportedly also planning to launch third-party alternatives to Google mobile apps. Improving its smartphone ecosystem’s autonomy is the main goal of that initiative, as well.
Naturally, many are already arguing the reported move reeks of desperation. The side effect of the approach is that more users will find their new Huawei handsets packed with what they consider bloatware. Be that as it may, Huawei appears to be choosing the lesser of two bad options here.
Bloatware or not, Google’s the only sure loser here
Regarding the alternative to the heart and soul of Google Mobile Services, the firm’s plans remain unchanged from 2019. In other words, it will unsurprisingly double down on Huawei AppGallery as the central software piece of its mobile portfolio.
New Huawei-made Google app substitutes are also on the way. The next such service, Huawei Video, will roll out globally next month. Given how entrenched Google’s mobile apps are, some will surely see those upcoming solutions as another example of added Android bloatware.
The strategy in question will officially debut with the next wave of Huawei’s handsets, insiders claim. It will encompass no fewer than eight Android devices, all planned for release by mid-2020. The high-end P40 lineup will almost certainly be included in the effort, as well.
Huawei’s current predicament was far from unexpected given its long history of issues with U.S. regulators. However, the widely publicized standoff has now lasted long enough that far-reaching consequences are inevitable.
For example, it’s unlikely Huawei would joyously embrace Google apps once again regardless of what happens from here on out. After massive investments in mobile app autonomy, the conglomerate would likely continue treading this path even if the U.S. lifted its ban momentarily. Its officials said as much on numerous occasions since early 2019.
As it’s still the second-largest smartphone maker on the planet, Huawei’s U.S. troubles will unquestionably weaken Google’s grip of the global mobile market.