Facebook has stopped Huawei from pre-installing its apps on smartphones. This is the latest example of tech companies cutting ties with the Chinese telecom giant after President Trump issued an effective trade ban against it.
Huawei phone owners will still be able to download and use apps like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook’s main app itself, and they’ll continue to receive updates through the Play store. The Chinese telecom giant just won’t be able to include them in their new smartphones, which it typically does alongside various other pre-loaded services like Twitter.
Facebook has apparently landed on a different level to deal with the trade ban than Google. Google has secured a temporary license to continue to send security updates to existing Huawei phones.
Huawei phones currently in stores or “those which have not yet shipped or even been built” will still have the Google services pre-installed. Facebook is denying pre-installs on “any phone which has not yet left the factory.”
