Meta complies with Indonesia’s new tech licensing rules

Indonesia's communication ministry records showed that Meta platforms - Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp - have already signed up to Indonesia's new licensing rules for tech firms a day before its deadline to comply or risk being blocked. The new rules released in late 2020 would give authorities broad powers to compel platforms to disclose data of certain users and take down content deemed unlawful, or that “disturbs public order” within four hours if urgent, and 24 hours if not. With a young, tech-savvy population of 270 million, Indonesia is a top-10 market in terms of user numbers for a host of social media companies, including Twitter, Facebook, and Bytedance's TikTok. According to Semuel Abrijani Pangerapan, a senior ministry official, non-compliant firms will lose out in the long run and will be reprimanded, fined, then eventually blocked in Indonesia.