CNET today reported that the Best Buy has decided to cut ties with the Chinese smartphone giant Huawei . The news outlet, citing an unnamed source, reported that Best Buy “has ceased ordering new smartphones from Huawei and will stop selling its products over the next few weeks.”
On Twitter Thursday, GlobalData analyst Avi Greengart called the decision “devastating for Huawei” given that Best Buy was its “sole U.S. physical retail distribution channel for its phones.”
US carriers AT&T and Verizon decided not to sell the Mate 10 Pro handset, reportedly due to pressure from the US government.
Huawei came under scrutiny from Congress in 2012 about potentially spying for the Chinese government, which it denies vehemently. Since then, the company has faced trouble finding a foothold for its phones at carriers, which control the vast majority of US phone sales.
