Huawei has reportedly been developing its own mobile operating system and may launch the OS as early as this year. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reports Huawei has been granted a trademark for the OS’s name, Hongmeng, from the Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration.
The move comes after Google parent Alphabet indicated it would restrict Huawei’s access to the Android platform and Google’s Play Store, in light of Huawei’s recent blacklisting by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Google has said it will provide Huawei phones with Android updates up until Aug. 19.
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Details of the OS are slim, though CNET has reported that the company has been developing the system since 2012. Huawei officials have said the company doesn’t plan to actually roll out the new OS unless access to the Android platform and Microsoft’s mobile OS is completely cut off.
Huawei’s chief of consumer business, Richard Yu, told CNBC earlier this week that the OS could be ready for launch in China by the end of the year, and would hit international markets early next year.
Speaking at the Potsdam Conference on National Cybersecurity in Germany this week, Huawei deputy chairman Ken Hu described the U.S.’s recent actions against the company as “restrictions based on ungrounded allegations” that are “totally unjustified.”
“This sets a dangerous precedent,” Hu said. “It goes against the values of the international business community, cuts off the global supply chain and disrupts fair competition in the market.”