Enterprise

Google begins blacklisting Huawei from its services

Biggest blow yet to the Chinese company

Published

May 20, 2019

Marvin Velasco

By now, it should be clear that Huawei hasn’t been doing well on North American soil. Whether it was because of accusations stemming from the US government or threats of banning the Chinese company’s 5G technologies in certain countries, there was always something for Huawei to worry about. In the latest development, we may be seeing their biggest hurdle yet.

Initially reported by Reuters, Google has already cut ties with Huawei, effectively banning them from the “transfer of hardware, software, and technical services except those publicly available via open source licensing.”

If this action holds, Huawei smartphones might soon lose access to Android updates, the Google Play store, and all Google-made apps and services — all of which are “not covered by the open source license and require a commercial agreement with Google.”

“Huawei will only be able to use the public version of Android and will not be able to get access to proprietary apps and services from Google,” says Reuters‘ source.

This move comes after US President Donald Trump added Huawei to the country’s trade blacklist last week. Additionally, Huawei settled a three-year-long patent dispute with Samsung a couple of days ago — probably in anticipation of this larger threat.

Aside from this early information, it’s still unsure how and when this blacklisting will take effect. According to the same source, both Huawei and Google are currently discussing internally how all this will affect their Android partnership.

However, Huawei phones in China may be unaffected, since they don’t rely on Google apps and services in the first place, choosing to use their own homegrown software. Furthermore, existing Huawei smartphone users could be safe from the loss of app access, but there’s no official confirmation on that as of now.

Earlier this year, it was already confirmed by a Huawei executive that the company is building a non-Android operating system for their smartphones. With the way things are going, its development may speed up.

Enterprise

realme is reportedly going back to being an OPPO sub-brand

All scheduled phones will still launch on time, though.

Published

January 9, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

A popular story among Chinese smartphone brands is whenever a sub-brand spinning off into its own independent entity. A less common one is when an independent entity suddenly merges back into the main entity. And yet, that’s the story we have today. realme is reportedly going back to being a sub-brand of OPPO.

If you don’t remember realme’s time as a sub-brand, then it’s hardly your fault. It’s been a long while since realme was considered a sub-brand. In 2018, the brand spun off on its own to form one of the most popular names in the Chinese smartphone space.

Today, via Leiphone, realme will return to OPPO as a sub-brand. Current realme CEO Sky Li will still retain his responsibilities heading the brand. Plus, all products on the current release schedule will still come out as planned.

However, starting this year, realme will start reintegrating back into OPPO, particularly through the latter’s after-sales programs. OnePlus will also follow the same structure going forward.

Currently, realme has not officially announced the move. That said, we also don’t know how the brand will address the reported change. It’s possible that the shift is just internal and has no effect on how the brand faces the public. For now, only time will tell.

Enterprise

Samsung warns that tech prices might increase this year

And it’s all because of AI.

Published

January 8, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

The big story late last year was the skyrocketing prices of chips. Analysts are predicting that the demand for RAM will cause the entire industry to experience hikes this year. Some users, especially in the PC building scene, are already feeling the burn. PCs won’t be the only victims, though. Xiaomi is already expecting hikes across the board. Now, Samsung is adding its voice to the growing list of warnings about price increases.

During CES 2026, Wonjiun Lee, Samsung’s global marketing chief, confirmed that the memory shortages are, in fact, real (via Bloomberg). Moreover, the company is now evaluating whether more price hikes are needed this year for its products. Though Lee expressed regret over pushing the prices to consumers, the state of the industry might force the company’s hand.

Samsung’s opinion has a lot of weight. While other brands have also voiced out their opinions lately, Samsung itself is a producer of chips. If a chip supplier is already warning users of prices affecting them, the effect will likely cascade even more when it comes to device manufacturers.

The ongoing shortage of chips is a result of the overwhelming demand from companies looking to build and bolster AI-based servers. The business-to-business demand is notably different from how regular consumers, who will soon find it hard to buy their own devices, see it.

At the very least, Samsung has not confirmed any price increases yet. However, all eyes are on the next Galaxy Unpacked, when Samsung will launch its newest Galaxy products. Will prices increase or stay the same?

Enterprise

TikTok finally gets a buyer in the United States

The deal targets a closing date in late January.

Published

December 19, 2025

Luigi Leonardo

The year started with a ban. A day before Donald Trump started his second term, TikTok went dark, in anticipation of an impending ban. The platform quickly went back online, leading to an ultimatum that saw TikTok hunt for an American buyer to full stave off a definitive ban in the United States. Now, as the year ends, a buyer is finally here.

Via CNBC, TikTok has reportedly inked a deal to finalize a deal in the United States, as stated in an internal memo from CEO Shou Zi Chew. The memo, which was sent just this week, details a plan that will see the deal close by January 26, 2026.

Fifty percent of TikTok’s newly restructured U.S. arm will be held by a collection of American investors including Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX. Meanwhile, already existing investors of TikTok will hold 30.1 percent. Finally, ByteDance will retain 19.9 percent.

Additionally, TikTok’s algorithm in the United States will be retrained with American data. The American arm will also handle the country’s “data protection, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurance.” Oracle will be the “trusted security partner” in charge of making sure the company keeps within regulations in the country.

With a deal pushing through, the long-running TikTok saga in the United States might finally come to a close.