China is reported on the verge of banning the use of all foreign software and computers in government offices and public institutions. This could be a move which positions China to hurt US tech companies sales. Occurring at a critical moment in the ongoing US-China trade war.
A report by the Financial Times indicated that Beijing had ordered all hardware and software be removed within three years. This could potentially lead to over 30 million pieces of hardware having to replaced within China. The US and China have been going back and forth on the trade war for two years now. With each nation attempting to supersede the other in becoming and sustaining the crown as global tech champion.
The potential ban would hurt American based tech companies including HP, Dell, and Microsoft. The Financial Times report indicated that the Communist Party’s Central Office’s plan for the hardware replacement would occur in a “3-5-2” plan. Replacing 30% of the hardware in 2020, 50% in 2021, and the final 20% in 2022. While companies like Microsoft would be hurt, Chinese based tech companies such as Lenovo could see a huge boost.
If China follows through with the plan they’d have a difficult time building up a capable software replacement to Microsoft. For instance, this year the US cut off Huawei to all US tech. Meaning that Huawei’s cell phones could no longer run on the global smartphone standard Android. Android is a phone software system developed and owned by Google. Huawei has had a very difficult time developing their own proprietary smartphone software, as a consequence selling far fewer units and doing most of their smartphone business within Chinese borders now. Time will tell if China actually executes the plan but it certainly would certainly be a hindrance to their technological progression and future standing as a global tech champion.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/09/tech/china-us-computers-software/index.html#