One example of international companies that are influenced by the government is the Chinese company Huawei. Until recently, it successfully operated in the U.S. market and sold branded equipment – cell phones, tablets, laptops, and telecommunication systems. During the implementation of 5G systems, the company was officially accused by our government of spying for China and received a ban on the installation of telecommunication systems. As a result, only a small part of the market remained, and some of the company’s products are still available for sale.
A trade war erupted over the spying allegations and the ensuing responses and bans from the Chinese side. Among other things, one of the most vigorous subsequent blows to Huawei Corporation was Google’s suspension of the cooperation agreement (Cartwright, 2020). As a manufacturer focused on exporting smartphones with the Android operating system, Huawei lost a massive part of the market not only in America but also in Europe and partly in Asia (Cartwright, 2020). When they developed an alternative to Google Play and even the operating system, customers preferred products of another brand with a more familiar system shell and services.
The influence of the state on the situation is difficult to underestimate; in fact, it is unknown whether it was about spying or redistribution of trade preferences – Huawei was powerful and rapidly developing in the U.S. and Europe markets. However, such restrictions deprive the average citizen of access to an inexpensive and sufficiently high-quality product, violating his rights to some extent. With all the abundance of alternatives, there were many connoisseurs of this particular technology brand, and spying on the user in one form or another is possible and constantly noticed in all other manufacturers’ products.
Reference
Cartwright, M. (2020). Internationalising state power through the internet: Google, Huawei and geopolitical struggle. Internet Policy Review, 9(3), 1-18.