
Photo: VCG
Embattled Huawei Technologies Co. set up a partnership with Alibaba Group-backed online video platform Youku for membership services and content distribution as the telecom giant steps up efforts to expand its consumer business.
Under the partnership, Huawei will pre-install Youku’s app on a selection of its mobile devices and allow users to connect their Huawei video app accounts with Youku services, the companies said Wednesday.
Huawei phones that will feature the Youku app are mainly lower-cost models, which account for half of Huawei’s phone sales, said Yan Zhanmeng, an analyst at Counterpoint. In 2018, Huawei’s total mobile phone shipments on the domestic market exceeded 100 million units.
The partnership with Youku followed a similar tie-up between Huawei and Tencent Video last month. Late last year, Huawei also added Mango TV as its video business partner.
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