Huawei eyes India's 4G rollout after AU ban
Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei is looking to capitalize on India's impending 4G rollout, after being banned from bidding for contracts in Australia's national broadband network (NBN) over security concerns. Huawei's Australian unit will also look for business opportunities created by the NBN market.
News daily The Economic Times reported Sunday that Huawei plans to increase its investments and operations of its Indian subsidiary as it focuses on the expected launch of 4G services in the country in some cities this year.
Huawei is "scaling up [India's] operation in terms of manpower, technology and investment", Suresh Vaidyanathan, Huawei India's deputy director of enterprise marketing, was quoted as saying in the report.
The focus on the Indian market comes as Huawei last month got banned by the Australian government to bid for any supply contracts in the country's A$35.9 billion (US$37 billion) national broadband network (NBN) over national security concerns.
"As a strategic and significant government investment, we have a responsibility to do our utmost to protect [the NBN's] integrity and that of the information carried on it," a spokesperson from Australia's attorney-general office said. "This is consistent with the government's practice for ensuring the security and resilience of Australia's critical infrastructure more broadly."
John Lord, chairman of Huawei’s unit in Australia, said in a television interview the company will still look for potential opportunities created in the broader market as part of the NBN rollout, according to a report by Australian newspaper Herald Sun Monday.
The ban also coincided with ongoing speculation of China-originated cyberattacks on foreign countries, including the United States.
Last week, The New York Times reported that the four-year joint venture between Huawei and U.S. security vendor Symantec--first announced in November 2011--had broke down because Symantec feared its affiliation with Huawei would prevent it from being able to obtain classified cyberthreat information released by the U.S. government.