Business can be rough primarily due to competition, and sometimes, your competition can screw up so bad that it makes you look too good than you actually are. That description would fit perfectly in describing Samsung’s Telecom Business. Huawei has been having it rough time with the West (developed markets) with allegations it is conducting cyber espionage at the behest of Beijing.
There are even reports that the U.S. President Donald Trump will sign an executive order banning telecommunications firms from using any of the Huawei equipment in their networks. It is no secret there is general mistrust between the U.S. and China. With Chinese tech firms having made significant in-roads in the U.S. domestic telecommunications market as both telecommunication network infrastructure providers and as OEMs.
It all began with security chiefs giving consumers warning not to buy Huawei devices alongside other Chinese brands. Then came reports European countries are either pausing or backtracking on telecommunications deals they had with Huawei.
Samsung now on top gear as Huawei luck runs out
Reports indicate that Samsung has embarked on a heavy investment on its telecom infrastructure business to position itself as the next alternative following the Huawei’s bad luck run. It is going after the 5G market Huawei is being forced to abandon.
Unlike Huawei which has to fight off the tag of allegations of working too closely with the Chinese government. Samsung has never faced such allegations (of say, it is working as a proxy for the South Korean government to spy on foreign nations) being leveled against it.
A U.S. official was recently quoted saying, “Going with an untrusted supplier like Huawei or ZTE will have all sorts of ramifications for your national security and … since we are military allies with almost all members of the European Union, on our national security as well.” It would be safe to say any position taken by the U.S. will be replicated across Europe.
Compared to Huawei, Samsung can be said to be more trusted; at least in the eyes of the security chiefs from the West. The South Korean company is reported to be now focusing on building upon that trust level and has embarked on forging partnerships with telecommunication companies around the world.
Though when you compare Samsung to companies such as Huawei, Ericsson, Cisco, ZTE, and Nokia it has an almost insignificant presence in the telecommunications infrastructure business. However, with the locking out of Huawei and ZTE from Western markets, Samsung is seeing a door opening up to expand its market share.