Indonesia bans sales of Google Pixel after iPhone 16 ban

Indonesia has banned the sale of Google Pixel smartphones for failing to meet domestic content requirements, days after it banned Apple’s 16-inch smartphone in Southeast Asia’s largest smartphone market.

The Ministry of Industry said Google phones cannot be sold until they comply with regulations requiring 40% local content on smartphones sold in Indonesia.

Google must obtain local content certification before resuming sales, Industry Ministry spokesman Febri Hendri Antoni Arief told local reporters.

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

Indonesian law requires technology companies to source 40% of handset and tablet components domestically, a requirement that cannot be met through local production, firmware development or direct investment in innovation projects.

Companies can satisfy the needs through different routes. Samsung and Xiaomi, for example, have established manufacturing facilities, while Apple has chosen to open engineering centers.

The regulation, enforced through a certification system called the “local content standard,” is part of Indonesia’s broader industrial policy to develop its large consumer market to boost the domestic economy. Companies that fail to meet these limits face sales restrictions.

Neither Google nor Apple are among the top five smartphone brands in Indonesia, according to market research firm Counterpoint.