Meta, Twitter, Others Register in Indonesia to Avoid Ban

By Adedapo Adesanya

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp as well as Twitter, Spotify, Netflix, and TikTok have submitted new business registrations in Indonesia to avoid being banned as part of new regulations to boost revenue, establish authority, and tackle misinformation.

Indonesia is one of the biggest social media markets in the world and it called on social media companies to register in the country or face a ban.

The registration is part of the country’s new regulation starting from January 2022, saying all tech platforms must secure licenses to be able to operate.

The regulation would allow the authorities to order the platforms to take down any contents considered unlawful, inappropriate, and “disturb public order,’’ within four hours if deemed urgent, and 24 hours if not.

The Indonesian government is currently trying to reduce the spreading of misinformation and hoaxes, particularly ahead of the country’s general election in 2024.

With the compliance from these companies, they will be able to establish their compliance with a new set of internet rules that will allow the government to control and police online content and tax the sale of digital goods.

Google, however, hasn’t yet shown up on the list of companies that have agreed to the new rules.

For context, the country’s Ministry of Communications and Informatics said on Tuesday that if these companies failed to register as of July 20 (today), they would be blocked in the next few days.

The ministry said that failure to do as required would cause them to name these companies illegal and unlawful in the country.

“We have warned all local and foreign tech companies, including online services, sites, and application providers, many times that they have to register if they do not want to risk being blocked.

“We have given them time since six months ago,” it noted.