Update | Huawei to launch cloud computing service in China, invest in 5G technology
China’s biggest telecoms network equipment maker will invest US$350 million over the next three years as part of a strategy to build its presence in connectivity as countries transform into digital economies.
Huawei, China’s biggest telecoms network equipment maker, will invest US$350 million over the next three years in consulting and system integration, methodologies and tools for network and data centre transformation, as part of a strategy to build its presence in connectivity as countries transform into digital economies.
The company will also spend US$600 million on research into 5G technology, and will conduct field tests this year and next with a view to introducing commercial 5G networks by 2020, chief marketing officer Yang Chaobin, told the company’s annual global analyst summit.
Huawei would join a number of companies looking into 5G, which promises greater speeds that could help smart cities and the “internet of things”, but which remains a work-in-progress currently with no unified standards as yet.
Fan Chan, vice president of Huawei’s accounting department, said he expects the company’s annual revenue to double to $70 billion by 2018, with a year-on-year growth of 10 per cent or higher in the coming years. It will be looking to attract top talent from around the world top add to its current 170,000 employees globally, he added.
Huawei has run into difficulties in its plans for global expansion in the past because of concerns in some countries, particularly the US, over whether the company has links to the Chinese government and could be a security risk. However it has strong businesses in emerging markets like Latin America.
Huawei will launch its public cloud computing services in the mainland market in July, rotating chief executive Eric Xu said at the summit.