In response to the news that the Federal Communications Commission is joining other government agencies in targeting the giant Chinese network equipment maker, Huawei, Lenovo said in a statement that it is “Evaluating what it means for the industry and our business.”

“Lenovo is a global company. As such we support fair trade and open markets. Like many other companies, Lenovo is evaluating what it means for our company and our business,” it said in a statement in response to questions from WRAL Techwire. The company also pointed out that “There is no ban on any Lenovo products by the Department of Defense or any agency within the U.S. Government.”

The company added, “Our security strategy ensures appropriate industry-standard security controls exist within product design, manufacturing, and opertions. Lenovo respects all agreements, laws, regulations and privacy standards, and has adopted and follows international standards – ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 2700 to meet quality, service and security objectives. All five of Lenovo’s acquisitions of US IT businesses since 2005 – including most recently the x86 server line from IBM – were approved by the committee on foreign investment in the United States (CFIUS), making us one of the most extensively vetted technology companies in the world.”

Lenovo operates one of its two global headquarters in Morrisville. The other is located in Beijing.

The FCC has proposed a rule that would inhibit telecom carriers from using money form the $8.5 billion Universal Service Fund that subsidizes phone, wireless and broadband services in poor and remote areas to buy equipment from companies deemed to pose national security risks. Potentially, the rule would further crimp Huawei’s American sales, particularly affecting small and rural carriers.

The proposed rule does not mention Huawei specifically, but would apply to any telecom supplier or subcontractor deemed a security risk, but the New York Times said there is no doubt the company is the target of the proposal.

The FCC’s move follows others by the U.S. government aimed at curtailing the reach of foreign tech companies, including putting Russian security software company Kaspersky on its banned list and President Trump’s blocking Broadcom’s $117 billion takeover bid for Singapore-based Qualcomm

 

 

 

\