US-China trade deal: Beijing has spoken to Apple, Microsoft about concession on cloud computing, sources say
- Chinese officials said to have held meeting with representatives of US tech firms to discuss possible change to cybersecurity law introduced in 2017
- Move could scrap requirement for foreign companies operating in China to license their technology to local partners
US and Chinese negotiators are discussing adding a concession on cloud computing to their trade agreement that would give foreign companies greater access to the US$12 billion Chinese market, people familiar with the talks said.
Chinese officials called a meeting this week with representatives of companies including Microsoft, Apple and Amazon.com to talk about the proposal in detail, one of the sources said.
The discussions include possibly scrapping the requirement that providers of remote computing services form joint ventures with local companies, said another person said.
Both asked not to be named discussing the private negotiations.
China introduced sweeping cybersecurity laws in 2017 to bolster control over the collection and movement of Chinese users’ data, and potentially grant the government more access to foreign companies’ technology. Foreign cloud companies are required to license their technology to local partners to operate in China and have been forced to store some information within the country.
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information did not reply to a request for comment. Amazon, Microsoft and Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment.