Google Pixel is now banned in one country, along with iPhone 16

A couple of days ago, it was reported that the Apple iPhone 16 series sales have been banned in one country, and Google Pixel devices are now on that list too. The country in question is Indonesia.

Google Pixel sales are now banned in world’s fourth-most-populated country

For those of you who don’t know, Indonesia is the fourth most populated country in the world, so this is kind of a big deal. Why did it happen, though? Well, the reason for both Apple and Google’s products are the same.

Indonesia requires a certain percentage of locally manufactured components in phones that are sold in the country. That percentage is not hit by either Apple or Google, which is why this happened.

What is that percentage? It’s 40%, so it’s not exactly low. The spokesperson of Indonesia’s industry ministry, Febri Hendri Antoni Arief, explained the rules to everyone. He specifically mentioned that Google’s devices did not meet the requirement, at least not yet. Therefore, they cannot be sold in the country.

He was specifically clear that the consumers can still use Pixel phones in the country, provided they’re bought abroad, of course. And in addition to that, the appropriate taxes are paid upon return.

Unofficially imported devices could get deactivated

The spokesperson also said that the authorities may consider deactivating phones that are imported unofficially. So, Indonesia is more than serious about the rules on the matter.

By doing this, Indonesia is trying to boost local manufacturing and encourage tech companies to source components from domestic suppliers. The authorities are basically leaving phone manufacturers with little options on the matter.

Local experts are not exactly happy with such rules. Bhima Yudhistirca, a director of the Center of Economic and Law Studies, said that such policies could be seen as a form of “pseudo” protectionism. He argued that they could push investors away.

It is also worth noting that, in Indonesia OPPO and Samsung are the top dogs. Google and Apple occupy smaller market shares.