If Huawei had more support in Washington, perhaps it would have been able to properly break into the U.S. smartphone market by teaming up with carriers. The company had been talking to carriers about a possible partnership and AT&T had even confirmed at one point that it would launch the company’s new Mate 10 handset. AT&T pulled out of the deal reportedly because of pressure from the government and now Verizon is going to do the same.
Soon after it was revealed that AT&T would start selling Huawei handsets to customers on its network, Huawei was said to be in talks with Verizon as well. Big Red was reportedly interested and if a deal had been reached, Huawei’s smartphones would have made it to the country’s top carrier.
That’s not going to happen, though. Bloomberg reports today that Verizon has dropped “all plans” to sell Huawei smartphones due to pressure from the U.S. government. That’s not the end of Huawei’s troubles in this key market, though.
Bloomberg News has obtained a congressional letter which reveals that U.S. lawmakers called on FCC Chairman Ajit Pai last month to start an investigation into Huawei’s plans to sell consumer devices in the country. The letter cites concerns from intelligence committees in Congress.
Huawei has brought its new Mate 10 smartphone to the United States via online retailers but as things stand, it’s unlikely that the company’s handsets will be available through a mobile carrier anytime soon.