Indonesia blocks Google Pixel sales after ban on iPhone 16

Indonesia has banned sales of Google Pixel smartphones for failing to meet domestic content requirements, days after blocking Apple’s iPhone 16 in Southeast Asia’s largest phone market.

The Indonesian Ministry of Industry said Google’s phones cannot be traded until they comply with rules requiring 40% local content in smartphones sold in Indonesia.

Google must obtain local content certification before resuming sales, Industry Ministry spokesperson Febri Hendri Antoni Arief told local reporters. “The local content rule and related policies are made for fairness for all investors that invest in Indonesia, and for creating added value and deepening the industry structure here,” Hendri was quoted as saying.

The ban follows Indonesia’s block on iPhone 16 sales last week after Apple failed to meet a $95 million investment commitment. Major smartphone makers must manufacture devices, develop firmware, or invest in local innovation to meet Indonesia’s content rules.

The Indonesian rule requires tech companies to source 40% of handset and tablet components domestically, a requirement that can be met through local manufacturing, firmware development or direct investment in innovation projects.

Companies can satisfy the requirements through different routes. Samsung and Xiaomi, for instance, have established manufacturing facilities, while Apple has opted to open developer academies.

The regulation, enforced through a certification system called “local content level,” forms part of Indonesia’s broader industrial policy to leverage its large consumer market for domestic economic development. Companies failing to meet these thresholds face sales restrictions.

Neither Google nor Apple rank among Indonesia’s top five smartphone brands, according to marketing research firm Counterpoint.