JAKARTA: Indonesian Minister of Communication and Information (Kominfo) Budi Arie Setiadi responded to a recent issue about the return of the TikTok Shop. He stressed that the government opened up opportunities for everyone to do business as long as they comply with existing regulations.
Social media, particularly X (formerly Twitter), have been abuzz with rumours that TikTok Shop will resume operations on November 10, 2023.
“We welcome TikTok Shop to do e-commerce business in Indonesia as long as there is a separate platform,” Budi Arie said at the Kominfo Ministry Office, on Thursday.
“If it’s social media, it’s social media. If it’s e-commerce or whatever it is, it definitely has to follow our rules.”
Since Oct. 4, 2023, the government has shut down TikTok Shop following a policy that prohibits social media from having a dual function as e-commerce by providing direct transaction services known as social commerce. This is stipulated in the Trade Minister’s Regulation No. 31 of 2023.
In line with Budi Arie, Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan or Zulhas allowed TikTok Shop to reopen in Indonesia as long as it has obtained an e-commerce license. “We are not banning it,” he said after visiting Tanah Abang Market on Friday, Oct. 13.
Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia also gave his opinion on the matter and said that TikTok would be restricted to its commerce feature.
“It’s not allowed. It (TikTok) is a social media, not an e-commerce,” Bahlil told reporters on the sidelines of the BNI Investor Daily Summit in Senayan, Jakarta, on Wednesday, Oct. 25.
Bahlil also said there are requirements to be met in order to obtain an e-commerce license. “TikTok is social media, only social media site. Don’t monopolize,” he said.
