NOTE: No issue next week due to international travel.
CHINA FEELS A FROSTY POND
Amidst the Twitter disarray, Black Friday roundups and the weird political goings-on across the pond, the big news this week was very under-covered. Both US (FCC) and UK governments (GOV) decided to stop using Chinese surveillance camera manufacturers citing national security concerns.
The companies in question are Huawei and ZTE ( and eight others for the US), and Hikvision and Dahua (for the UK). The decisions prevent authorities from installing technology produced by companies that fall under the jurisdiction of China’s National Intelligence Law. The law requires Chinese citizens and organisations to cooperate with the country’s intelligence and security services - something neither country want as competition heats up around the world about China’s power and cuddling up to forces that rhyme with Russia. Context? The majority of UK public bodies use CCTV cameras made by Hikvision or Dahua - including over 50% of secondary schools.
The move per FCC folks is an ‘unprecedented’ yet neither side quoted specifics. Not buying goods is one-way countries swipe at each other when tensions are high and goals are misaligned. America needs to rely less on China and Britain, well Britain needs to sort out pretty much everything right now. Canada and Australia are also ramping up restrictions on Chinese manufacturers. No country is completely blocking all hardware from these companies, still it’s another shot across the bow of China.
❝
__ DO __ Watch the international stage a bit more closely, big pieces are being moved and nudged. Get a subscription to the Economist. // __ DON’T __ Think Beijing won’t respond. The moves strike fiscally, sure, but this is more a slap on the much-protected Chinese ‘face’. Washington insiders are saying the move is a nod to a future ban on TikTok. Time will tell. No one on either side of the Atlantic will miss TikTok (bar the users).
HOW TO HANDLE ANYTHING THAT COMES YOUR WAY: You can pre-order the new version of ‘Disruptive Technologies’ Jan 2023 containing the TBD framework. There will be rewards for pre-orders, so keep the receipt!
If you’re in e-commerce, retail, FMCG, healthcare, technology or content, you need to subscribe to ‘What Did Amazon Do This Week?’. Everything Amazon does, every week. Featured in the Wall Street Journal and called ‘Obsessively detailed’. Subscribe now (£15pm/£100pa) and tell a friend; they’ll thank you.
/// SEE: The Menu - it’s beautiful and shocking. [Trailer]
/// READ: ‘Smart Brevity’ by Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, Roy Schwartz. [Barnes & Noble]
/// LISTEN: The 7 things you shouldn’t talk about. 5 stars. [TAL]
❝
