Huawei applies to trademark its OS ‘Hongmeng’ in 9 countries, including Canada

Huawei has applied to trademark its operating system in nine countries, including Canada, Reuters reports.

The company filed to trademark “Hongmeng” in Cambodia, South Korea and New Zealand, according to documents from the U.N. World Intellectual Property Organization. In Germany and other European countries, Huawei filed for ‘Ark OS’ instead. 

“Huawei has a robust plan for business continuity. These plans have been in development for over a decade, and cover all aspects of our business, We look forward to continuing to serve customers all across Canada with the most advanced products and solutions available,” Chris Pereira, director of public affairs at Huawei Canada, told MobileSyrup.

The move comes after a ban imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. The ban blocks Huawei from working with any U.S. based companies. Shortly after, Google pulled business from Huawei, including blocking the company from having any access to proprietary applications.

Huawei’s Richard Yu said the company has been working on a backup OS for a while with the knowledge that it might be banned by the U.S. It has suggested that it may release the system later this year or early 2020.

Google and other companies have been trying to find a solution with the U.S. and have told officials that Huawei’s OS could pose a bigger threat than if it were allowed to work with U.S. companies.

According to Reuters, the application to trademark the OS would be for “gadgets ranging from smartphones, portable computers to robots and car televisions.”

Source: Reuters