Handset chip designer MediaTek Inc (聯發科) yesterday said it has submitted an application to the US government for permission to continue supplying chips to Huawei Technologies Co (華為) after Washington’s new restrictions on the Chinese telecom giant’s access to US technology take effect next month.
The US Department of Commerce early this month further tightened its grip on Huawei’s access to foreign-made chips developed or produced using US software or technology amid escalating tensions with China.
Almost all suppliers of Huawei will require a license from the department to be able to ship chips to Huawei.
Photo: Lisa Wang, Taipei Times
The new curbs are to take effect on Sept. 15 after a 90-day grace period ends.
MediaTek said it “has already applied to the US side based on regulatory rules,” according to a brief company statement yesterday.
The Hsinchu-based company said it is “waiting for a review.”
The chip supplier reiterated that it would comply with relevant laws and rules on global trade, the statement said.
MediaTek was originally considered a major beneficiary of the export ban on US technology, as Huawei has been increasingly adopting chips designed by MediaTek as substitutes for those designed by its semiconductor arm, HiSilicon Technologies Co (海思), to circumvent the US restrictions.
However, the new US curbs have upended the scheme.
Last week, MediaTek said in a regulatory filing that the US’ latest rules “should not have a significant impact on the company’s operation in the short term.”
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) has said that it has since May 15 stopped taking new orders from Huawei, its second-biggest customer.
TSMC has no plans to ship wafers to Huawei after Sept. 14. TSMC makes chips designed by HiSilicon.
Separately, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday said that it has revised related rules to further prevent the outflow to China of technology developed by local firms.
Local companies, individuals and organizations would require the ministry’s approval to provide or transfer technologies or patents to Chinese entities, the ministry said.
At present, only technology licensing deals need the ministry’s approval.
“The ministry is tightening regulations to guard against China’s access to Taiwan’s crucial technologies,” Investment Commission spokesman Su Chi-yen (蘇琪彥) said on the telephone.
The new rules would also include the licensing or transfer of patents relating to layout designs of integrated circuits.
The new rules are to take effect by the end of this year at the earliest, Su said.
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