Huawei's Google Mobile Services replacement is finally nearing wider launch

HUAWEI is still reeling under the infamous US trade ban and that’s the reason the company has been working hard to create HUAWEI Mobile Services (HMS) as an alternative to Google Mobile Services (GMS). Now, the new mobile suite will reportedly get its global debut at HUAWEI and HONOR’s Barcelona launch event on February 24.

Multiple Chinese publications are reporting that HUAWEI will unveil the European edition of the HONOR View 30 series at its upcoming event. The HONOR View 30 and View 30 Pro were previously launched in China back in November. The outlets add that the European variants of these phones will be the first to carry HMS out-of-the-box.

Related: HUAWEI in 2020: So many questions

The development of HMS has been underway for quite some time now. It was released in China back in December, but was only available in beta. It also launched with the Mate 30 Pro in the likes of Spain and Indonesia. But aside from the limited Mate 30 Pro release, availability of HUAWEI phones with HMS outside of China is very limited right now, so the HONOR launch marks a major push for the framework.

The mobile suite includes services like HUAWEI ID, HUAWEI App Gallery, HUAWEI Themes, mobile cloud, and more. It’s also expected to launch with replacements for some essential Google apps for navigation, payments, gaming and messaging.

HUAWEI needs its Google-replacement services now more than ever. The brand is facing a fresh set of accusations from the US government. It’s trying to fight back. Meanwhile, the latest partial licence extension gave HUAWEI just 45 days to be able to conduct business with select US firms, compared to the 90 days granted in the previous extensions.

If US-HUAWEI relations degrade further over the next few weeks, the brand might not get another license extension. Will it spell the end of GMS support for current HUAWEI devices? I guess we’ll just have to wait and watch how things develop.

For now, it’s about time HUAWEI presented a full-fledged alternative to GMS. A company executive previously boasted that HUAWEI will not rely on Google even if the US ban is reversed. While HUAWEI later said an “open Android ecosystem” is still its first choice, launching HMS is vital for the firm to maintain a strong global presence. Otherwise, it could lose its position in the global smartphone market to other Chinese rivals who are also upping their game this year.