- Indonesia warns six unregistered foreign online travel agents to comply or face potential blocks.
- The move is part of the country’s tightening oversight on foreign tech giants.
- Agoda and Airbnb have secured registration, while others face a five-day ultimatum.
Ultimatum looms for non-compliant platforms
In the latest move to tighten oversight on foreign tech companies, the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information issued warnings to six unregistered foreign-owned online travel agents (OTAs).
These platforms – Booking.com, Expedia, Klook, and Trivago – face a potential block if they fail to register as private electronic system providers within five working days from March 5. Only Agoda and Airbnb have complied, securing registration on March 12.
Tightening oversight on foreign tech giants
Other registered entities include Line, Yahoo Indonesia, Meta, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The ultimatum follows Indonesia’s recent crackdown on foreign tech giants.
Notably, TikTok Shop faced a temporary ban last year, which was later resolved through its acquisition of e-commerce giant Tokopedia.
Furthermore, plans are underway to prohibit foreign merchants from selling imported goods priced below $100 on e-commerce platforms.
Outgoing President Joko Widodo also issued a decree mandating that platforms like Meta and Google compensate news publishers.
Simultaneously, president-elect Prabowo Subianto pledges to prioritize foreign investment attraction.
To read the original article: https://www.techinasia.com/indonesia-block-foreignowned-otas-week
