The ban will not come into effect until the second vote of the FCC. Although the manufacturer’s name is not directly mentioned, it goes without saying that the top targets of the ban are Huawei and ZTE.
Huawei, ZTE has grown into a globally renowned communications equipment supplier. However, the US Congress’ investigation in 2012 indicated that the equipment of the two companies may threaten national security. This has caused their business in the United States to be difficult to develop.
In fact, at present, Huawei has achieved some success in rural areas in the United States. Some small regional operators cannot purchase equipment from other suppliers. Therefore, they turned their attention to Huawei.
According to the Wall Street Journal, many regional wireless operators, TV stations, and Internet service providers in the United States have used Huawei equipment and believe that their products are inexpensive and attentive. However, many of them rely on federal funds to purchase. And upgrade communication equipment.
For example, LHTC Broadband and East Oregon Telecom with 7,000 customers are Huawei customers.
The ban will limit these small operators from receiving support from the U.S. government-led Universal Service Fund. The fund is approximately US$8.5 billion in size to allow access to the Internet in remote areas of the United States. Many of these regions still rely on telephone communications today. It is not difficult to conclude that the above ban has blocked the way for these small operators.
U.S. local media commented that this move may expose these small operators to huge financial pressures and also reduce their ability to provide network services.
Before the voting began on Tuesday, the CEO of Eastern Oregon Telecom issued a statement in the Wall Street Journal saying, 'If we need to specify what equipment, how the balance of the market is balanced'.
He believes that the new legislation discussed within the U.S. government is more likely to be driven by nationalism and trade protectionism rather than real concerns about hacking and espionage.
In addition, on April 9th, the Rural Wireless Association, an organization headquartered in Washington, the United States capital, stated in an open letter that restrictions on the procurement of equipment will not only make it difficult to ensure national security, but also give it to many rural areas in the United States. And broadband networks in remote areas cause irreversible losses. This association represents small operators with less than 100,000 users in the United States.
When asked about the results of the voting, Huawei issued a statement emphasizing its independence from any government agency and accusing the US authorities of 'putting a series of untrue allegations against Huawei'.
'We are disappointed with the FCC proposal', Huawei added, 'If this resolution is passed, the choice of rural operators in the United States will become even less, and their users and enterprises will not be able to obtain reliable and convenient telecommunication services. '.
The FCC vote was conducted one day after the U.S. Department of Commerce prohibited any U.S. companies from providing components to ZTE. The U.S. Department of Commerce believes that ZTE has failed to punish 30 employees who helped to circumvent U.S. sanctions against Iran. Reconciliation clause reached in June of the year.
In addition, in January of this year, Huawei’s cooperation with AT&T’s smartphones also failed due to US government intervention.
Last month, when the US Foreign Investment Committee (CFIUS) blocked Singapore Broadcom from acquiring American chip maker Qualcomm, it also joined Huawei.
CFIUS said in its letter of advice to block Broadcom's acquisition of Qualcomm: The acquisition may weaken Qualcomm's competitiveness, making Huawei and other Chinese companies more influential in formulating 5G standards, and this will threaten US national security.
On the 17th, Huawei held a global analyst conference in Shenzhen. At the meeting, Huawei's rotating chairman Xu Zhijun expressed his dissatisfaction when he was asked how Sino-US trade disputes will affect his business plan in the United States. 'Explaining what is happening between the two countries. Trade frictions are definitely beyond my ability. There are things that do not shift our will.'