Indonesia blocks Google Pixel sales after iPhone 16 ban

Indonesia has banned the sale of Google Pixel smartphones for failing to satisfy national content requirements, days after blocking Apple’s iPhone 16 in (*16*) Asia’s largest phone market.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Industry said Google phones can’t be traded until they meet regulations requiring smartphones sold in Indonesia to have 40% local content.

Before resuming sales, Google must obtain certification for local content, Industry Ministry spokesman Febri Hendri Antoni Arief told local reporters. “The Local Content Policy and related policies aim to be fair to all investors investing in Indonesia and to add value and deepen the industry structure in the country,” Hendri was quoted as saying.

The ban follows Indonesia block regarding the sale of the iPhone 16 last week after Apple defaulted on a $95 million investment commitment. Major smartphone makers must produce devices, develop firmware or spend money on local innovation to satisfy Indonesian content rules.

Indonesian regulations require tech firms to source 40% of cell phone and tablet components from inside the country, which may be met through local manufacturing, firmware development or direct investment in innovation projects.

Companies can meet the necessities in various ways. For example, Samsung and Xiaomi opened production plants, and Apple decided to open developer academies.

The regulation, enforced through a certification system called “local content level”, is a component of Indonesia’s broader industrial policy to leverage its large consumer marketplace for national economic development. Companies that fail to satisfy these thresholds face sales restrictions.

Neither Google nor Apple are among the many top five smartphone brands in Indonesia, based on research firm Counterpoint.