Best Buy says goodbye to Huawei smartphones

Huawei’s woes in the US look set to worsen, following reports retailer Best Buy is set to stop selling smartphones from the Chinese vendor.

While the vendor failed to secure anticipated operator deals to offer its smartphones in the country, against a backdrop of concern around security issues, the company had offered unlocked devices through retail channels.

But the loss of Best Buy – a key player in the US electronics market – is a further blow. The company will stop selling Huawei smartphones “over the next few weeks”, Reuters reported.

The retailer said it would not comment on specific contracts, but noted decisions are made based on “a variety of reasons”.

While Huawei had been basically shut-out of the US infrastructure market for some time, its smartphone activities have only recently come under the spotlight. Rival Chinese vendor ZTE has a big presence in the US device space, although it has not so far faced the same scrutiny.

Earlier this week The Wall Street Journal reported security concerns about Huawei were “spreading beyond the US to key allies”, with Australia, Canada and South Korea cited.

The paper said the vendor had been the subject of debate in Canada’s parliament; the chief executive of SK Telecom had described it as “a concern”; and the company also faced scrutiny in Australian infrastructure projects.