Medan, Indonesia – Winston, a medical physician who lives and works within the capital of North Sumatra Province, is a self-proclaimed Apple fan.
At present the proud proprietor of an iPhone 15, Winson had been trying ahead to upgrading to the newest mannequin, the iPhone 16, launched in September.
Winston, nonetheless, has reluctantly given up on the thought for the reason that Indonesian authorities banned gross sales of the iPhone 16 and the Google Pixel in late October, citing the tech giants’ failure to adjust to the nation’s Tingkat Komponen Dalam Negeri, or TKDN, coverage, which requires telephones to supply at the very least 40 % of their elements regionally.
“Indonesian rules about iPhones hit me as soon as, and as soon as was sufficient,” Winston, who like many Indonesians goes by one title, advised Al Jazeera.
Whereas Winston may purchase an iPhone abroad to deliver again residence – a comparatively frequent observe that’s authorized so long as the cellphone will not be resold – he has been burned by Indonesian rules earlier than.
“I purchased the iPhone 11 in Singapore again in 2019 as a result of it was less expensive than in Indonesia, about $250 cheaper in truth. A round-trip ticket to Singapore at the moment was solely $120. You possibly can fly to Singapore and again to Indonesia on the identical day, so it was less expensive,” he stated.
Winston used the cellphone with out issues for a couple of 12 months, till the Indonesian authorities in 2022 issued a regulation mandating that every one telephones be registered.
Regardless of registering his cellphone as required, the system instantly misplaced sign in the future and wouldn’t reconnect to the community, even with a unique SIM card, he stated.
“I went to a licensed Apple merchandise reseller in Medan as a result of I assumed there was an issue with the cellphone, however they only stated, ‘There’s nothing we will do or counsel,’” he stated.
Saddled with an unusable iPhone, Winston, who has had no issues along with his present iPhone 15, which he purchased by a licensed reseller, offered the system at a loss at a secondhand retailer throughout a subsequent go to to Singapore.
Indonesia, the fourth-most populous nation with some 280 million folks, is without doubt one of the world’s largest smartphone markets.
The archipelago was residence to some 190 million smartphone customers in 2022, in accordance with market analysis agency Newzoo.
In accordance with information from the Ministry of Trade, the nation imported about 22,000 Google Pixel telephones and 9,000 iPhone 16s in 2024, earlier than authorities introduced the bans.
Smartphone shipments to Indonesia have been dominated by units made by China’s Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo, and South Korea’s Samsung.
Abdul Soleh, a lawyer in Medan, stated the prohibitively costly worth of the iPhone 16 for a lot of Indonesians would possibly clarify why there had not been extra vocal opposition to the ban.
“It’s a actual disgrace, as a result of iPhones are very talked-about and have a excessive consumer satisfaction price in Indonesia,” Soleh advised Al Jazeera.
“It could be higher if the iPhone 16 could possibly be offered in Indonesia as a result of there are various fanatics right here.”
Khairul Mahalli, the top of the Chamber of Commerce in North Sumatra, stated that whereas Indonesia’s TKDN coverage is geared toward supporting native business, it may have unintended penalties.
“As a member of the World Commerce Group (WTO) with a commerce business that works between international locations, it’s positive to guard our industries, however we additionally have to have checks and balances in place,” Mahalli advised Al Jazeera.
“One of many points for the long run could possibly be that, if Indonesia blocks the gross sales of sure merchandise, different international locations may do the identical and now not settle for the gross sales of Indonesian merchandise on the worldwide market.”
Mahalli stated it was the job of the federal government to search out methods to minimise hurt to native industries which might be much less drastic than outright bans on international merchandise.
“We don’t have to fully ban international gross sales, as Indonesia’s market is massive sufficient to accommodate international merchandise as a result of its massive inhabitants of over 270 million folks,” he stated.
“We have to take a look at whether or not native manufacturing can sustain with shopper demand.”
Rio Priambodo, the top of the authorized and complaints division on the non-profit Indonesia Shoppers Group, stated customers ought to assume twice about buying the newest iPhone mannequin, particularly by unlawful resellers within the nation.
“The Shoppers Group recommends that buyers don’t simply attempt to purchase the iPhone 16 by any means doable if it has been banned by the federal government,” Priambodo advised Al Jazeera.
“If purchases are made illegally, it will get rid of the dimension of shopper safety that every one prospects ought to have.”
In a bid to interrupt the deadlock, Apple has pledged to dramatically ramp up its funding within the nation in trade for lifting the ban.
In November, the California-based tech big supplied to speculate $100m within the nation over two years, a 10-fold enhance from an earlier pledge to pour $10m into the development of an equipment and elements manufacturing unit in Bandung, West Java.
Regardless of the supply, the Ministry of Trade appeared unmoved.
“From the federal government’s perspective, in fact, we wish this funding to be bigger,” spokesperson Febri Hendri Antoni Arif stated on the time.
On November 25, Jakarta formally rejected the supply, with Trade Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita saying it didn’t meet Indonesia’s “ideas of equity”.
He stated that Apple had invested extra vital quantities in neighbouring international locations equivalent to Thailand and Vietnam, together with $15bn for manufacturing amenities within the latter.
“Based mostly on the technocratic evaluation, the funding quantity has not met the determine that we take into account honest,” he stated.
“We would like Apple to return to do enterprise right here, however we want a good decision.”
Within the meantime, Apple followers equivalent to Winston face the prospect of constructing do with out the newest fashions for the foreseeable future.
“I perceive that the ban is for political causes as a result of Apple doesn’t wish to spend money on Indonesia, and I stand with my authorities. However I’ll by no means purchase an iPhone overseas once more,” he stated.
