TP-Link seeks to secure conditional approval from FCC following router import ban — company stresses it is no longer Chinese-owned

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TP-Link seeks to secure conditional approval from FCC following router import ban — company stresses it is no longer Chinese-owned

The company is making moves days after competitors secure an exemption to sell new routers

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TP-Link, one of the more popular consumer networking brands in the U.S., is currently engaged in discussions with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in a bid to secure a conditional approval to continue introducing new models after the FCC’s blanket ban on imported routers , PCMag reports. According to documents the company filed with the agency, TP-Link argued that it is a U.S. company with a 20% share of the consumer retail market. Furthermore, it said that “TP-Links routers are very positively reviewed by technology reviewers” and that “TP-Link routers are safe and secure.” The company was previously owned by TP-Link Technologies Co., which was based in Shenzhen, China, but it has since separated from its parent in 2022, with the company saying that it’s now an independent entity based in the U.S.

One of the prerequisites to getting approval is for the applicant to show “a detailed, time-bound plan to establish or expand manufacturing in the United States for the router for which the applicant is seeing Conditional Approval in order the that device to qualify for FCC authorization” and “a description of committed and planned capital expenditures, financing, or other investments dedicated to U.S.-based manufacturing and assembly over the next 1-5 years, including expected timelines and milestones.”

You may like Netgear secures conditional approval from the FCC following router ban FCC bans import of new consumer routers not made in the US over security threat Here’s what the FCC ban on foreign-manufactured routers actually means for consumers It is unclear whether TP-Link had these requirements on hand, especially as its assembly lines and supply chains are still based in China and Vietnam. Still, two other manufacturers have successfully secured conditional approvals — Adtran Inc., which is an Alabama-based telecommunications and fiber-networking company, and Netgear.

There have been questions about the latter’s approvals, especially because it did not publicly release any documents proving that it was bringing back manufacturing capabilities onshore. Despite that, Netgear said in its SEC disclosure , “So long as the conditional approval is maintained, NETGEAR can launch new consumer routers and update the software on existing consumer routers indefinitely.”

TP-Link has since divorced from its Chinese parent, with the process beginning in 2022 and completing in 2024. The company’s website says that it’s headquartered in Irvine, California, and that the U.S. headquarters owns and directs the “global TP-Link business.” It also said that the company is owned by Jeffrey Chao and his wife, who are both Irvine residents. There have also been reports that Chao is applying for fast-track residency under the million-dollar Trump Gold Card visa. Nevertheless, the company’s historical ties to China would likely mean that it would face close scrutiny from U.S. officials, especially regarding Chao’s citizenship.

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