Tech

Vodafone will remove Huawei from its mobile network

The United Kingdom-based company is trying to limit Huawei's presence.

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The United States isn't the only country that is trying to restrict the presence and influence of the Chinese telecommunications company Huawei. According to Reuters, Vodafone will also limit Huawei's presence by completely removing its equipment from its mobile network. Vodafone, which is headquartered in the United Kingdom, is making this decision to ultimately limit reliance on Huawei's 5G technology.

According to Reuters, the company's chief executive Nick Read told the press, "We have now decided as a result of the European Union and the United Kingdom government's decision to take out Huawei from the core."

Hold your horses — Decisions like these are massive and take time before they take effect. According to Reuters, Read said that the complete removal of Huawei's equipment will take about five years. On top of that, it's an expenditure that will require at least 200 million euros.

Similar tension in the White House — As The Wall Street Journal recently reported, White House economic advisers like Larry Kudlow are also working on bringing alternatives to Huawei's 5G technology. So far, companies like Microsoft, Dell, and AT&T are part of this large scale brainstorming. "The big-picture concept is to have all of the United States 5G architecture and infrastructure done by American firms, principally," Kudlow told the publication. "That also could include Nokia and Ericsson because they have big United States presences."

With pressure from both the United Kingdom and United States, Huawei seems to be in a tough position. Last year, however, the company's CEO told the press that trade blacklisting and restrictions from other countries did not worry him. If anything, he mused, the adversity could bring out even more innovation from Huawei.