SHENZHEN — Huawei’s rotating CEO Eric Xu on Monday ruled out the possibility that the Chinese company will take part in a large-scale acquisition deal in 2016.
During a question and answer session at the 2016 Huawei Analyst Summit, Xu said he believes “consolidation in the industry will be conducive to competition” but said Huawei had no plans to undertake a large merger itself.
Unlike the deals recently struck by Nokia and Alcatel-Lucent or Cisco and Jasper, Xu said Huawei plans to continue its focus on smaller acquisitions. The goal, Xu said, is for Huawei to acquire smaller companies with core capabilities that will enhance its portfolio.
Xu was also quizzed about the future of Huawei’s smartphone business in the wake of the recent launch of its P9 flagship device. While Xu was unable to offer a timeline for the company’s ambitious plan to surpass Samsung and Apple as the leading smartphone brand, he said the company is aiming to become China’s first high-end consumer brand within the next five to ten years.
When it comes to the Internet of Things (IoT), Xu said he doesn’t believe a single standard will emerge across the connected landscape. Instead, Xu said Huawei plans to work with telecommunications companies on solutions that will allow more connections. Xu said the IoT standard that is expected to be released this year should also help enable more connections.
Asked about the new security issues that come with the IoT and “cloudification,” Xu said he feels there is no need to wait until those issues are fully resolved since the process could take years. While he stressed that security is important and should be addressed by the entire industry, Xu said different things require different levels of security and said innovation can start with the applications that require fewer security measures. Soon, he said, security technologies and solutions will become more robust, allowing companies to pick and choose what’s best to suit a particular application’s needs.