Favouring Google's Android operating system, Huawei have branded Microsoft's Windows Phone platform as "weak."

Currently holding third spot in the smartphone market, the Chinese company shied away from predicting the future of Windows Phone, despite adopting the operating system itself.

"Whether Windows Phone [will be] successful is difficult to say - it has a very small market share," said Richard Yu, chairman of Huawei's consumer business group, in an interview with the Financial Times.

"[Windows Phones] are weak but still require a licence fee. That's not good. Android is free."

The manufacturer, recently tasked with building 2degrees' 4G network, also revealed its openness to buying Nokia, in a bid to become the top smartphone manufacturer across the globe.

The Finnish company have also been in talks with Microsoft regarding an acquisition but despite Samsung and Apple leading the way, and with Huawei yet to make any major acquisitions in the market, Yu remains confident the company can continue to progress in the industry.

“We are considering these sorts of acquisitions; maybe the combination has some synergies but depends on the willingness of Nokia," he told FT.

"We are open-minded.

“Twenty years ago, we were nothing but now we have the best quality [phones] and our customers say we are the best.

“We want to shorten the gap with competitors. We want to lead.”

Yet Huawei founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei was force to assure New Zealand's Communications Minister Amy Adams recently that the company poses no threat to cyber-security, following accusations in the US earlier this year.

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