Staff reporter and agencies
China has slammed a US Federal Communications Commission decision to revoke the license of China Unicom's (0762) US unit to operate in the United States over national security concerns, calling the action unjust.
The order requires China Unicom Americas to end domestic interstate and international telecommunications services that had been granted in 2002 in the United States within 60 days of the order's publication. It is the latest move by the American regulator to bar Chinese telecommunications carriers from the United States.
In response, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology yesterday urged the US to withdraw the unjust decision against Chinese enterprises and would take necessary measures to defend the rights of Chinese companies.
The Chinese department said FCC is using its power to crack down Chinese firms since it revoked China Unicom Americas' licenses without disclosing the company's details of violating laws.
In October of 2021, the FCC revoked the US authorization for China Telecom (Americas), saying it "is subject to exploitation, influence and control by the Chinese government." The Chinese failed to win an appeal of the decision.
Meanwhile, Apple led all competitors by shipping 81.5 million smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2021, research firm Counterpoint Research estimates. The vendor from the US also beat China's Vivo and topped in China for the first time since Q4 2015, occupying its largest ever market share of 23 percent.
The newly released iPhone 13 helped Apple out-sell Chinese rivals Vivo and Oppo after Huawei plummeted down the rankings to the 6th place, Counterpoint Research said in a report Wednesday. Apple's sales in the country surged 32 percent. Globally, China's Xiaomi (1810) and South Korea's Samsung Electronics shipped 45 million and 67 million units respectively in the last three months in 2021.
China Unicom will have to end services in America within 60 days. AFP
