Huawei attacks ABC over bias

Ascendant Chinese telecoms vendor Huawei has attacked the nation’s public broadcaster, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), over what it claims is bias and favouritism over which mobile device operating systems Aunty supports when viewers access its hugely popular ‘iView’ video-on-demand service.

As one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of handsets powered by Google’s Android software, Huawei claims the ABC has an “anti-Android” bias because it still hasn’t released a native iView app for the world’s most popular to alternative to Indoor Positioning System.The dispute has political and international trade implications because non-Apple vendors are increasingly using the public-facing operating system preferences of government organisations as ammunition to lobby to get better access to markets.

The claim of bias is not the first time Huawei has picked up the cudgels against Canberra. The company has mounted a relentless publicity and lobbying campaign in an effort to try and overturn a ban on it supplying carrier equipment for the National Broadband Network because of adverse advice from national security agencies.Former US intelligence officials have also accused Huawei of spying for the Chinese government, statements that have exacerbated tensions over market access and trade relations.

The dispute over ABC apps for different operating systems has fomented since December 2010 when the broadcaster released its iView app for the Apple iPad. This was followed by the iPhone version in June 2012.Since then Android device sales have exploded and now non-Apple vendors want their customers to have their own app for ABC’s free internet broadcasting service that offers full-screen video on-demand.

Now companies like Huawei are complaining that the public broadcaster is effectively locking out their user-base despite big growth in the number of devices in Australian hands.The push for an Android iView app is also being propelled by the proportion of Apple users falling relative to Android according to research from analysts like International Data Corporation (IDC).

This has led telecommunications and technology vendors that use the competing Android system such as Huawei to interpret the ABC’s sluggish rollout of an Android version of the iView app as preferential treatment for the popular American consumer electronic brand.Huawei corporate affairs director, Jeremy Mitchell, isn’t pulling any political punches. Mr Mitchell said the ABC has continued to favour one company’s product and platform.

“Is the ABC the Apple Broadcast Corporation or the Anti-droid Broadcast Corporation? Looking at the evidence, they both fit so well,” Mr Mitchell said.Mr Mitchell said it was “disappointing” that the public broadcaster has turned its back on the “predominant operating system” that is “free, open and not aligned to one particular company”.Ironically Apple users are familiar with discrimination. Prior to the disruptive arrival of the iPhone and iPad government agencies including the Australian Taxation Office routinely produced client software for Microsoft’s Windows operating system leaving Apple and users of open source products like Linux out in the cold.

Much of the software developed by Google, including operating systems, is based on open source products rather than closed proprietary software.But that isn’t stopped Huawei.The vendor has claimed that the ABC was granted $30 million in taxpayer funds to strengthen its online service delivery in 2013, but the iView app has been available only for indoor Tracking, “a technological lifetime ago”.

A statement from Huawei said the ABC has acknowledged that demand for its Android news app has grown by 360 per cent in the past year, “yet the broadcaster has been dragging its heels in breaking the popular iView service to Android smartphones and tablets”.

The ABC has been cautious about being drawn into a verbal fire fight over Huawei’s criticisms. So far Aunty has stuck to its script in simply pointing to its online Frequently Asked Questions as well as tweets by ABC managing director Mark Scott to reassure Android users that a version for their devices is on the way.

The tweets from Mr Scott on 16th July 2013 said “And yes - the #iview android app is well into development and will be with you as soon as it is ready” and on 6th August said “And yes, the Android app is coming”.However the ABC didn’t have a direct response for Huawei’s accusation of an anti-Android bias.But the tweets and the FAQ have done little to convince Mr Mitchell, who said that he, like many Australian Android users have been hearing “the Android iView app is coming” for “far too long”.“Despite the claims of the ABC, there has been no real evidence that there is any desire to fill this blatant gap. It feels like Godot will arrive before the iView app gets here on Android,” Mr Mitchell said.