JAKARTA, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Indonesia said it has banned

sales of smartphones made by Alphabet's Google due to

rules requiring the use of locally manufactured components, days

after blocking sales of tech giant Apple's ( AAPL ) iPhone 16

for the same reason.

Indonesia blocked sales of Google Pixel phones because the

company has not met the rules which necessitate certain

smartphones sold domestically to contain at least 40% of parts

manufactured locally.

"We are pushing these rules so that there's fairness for all

investors in Indonesia," Febri Hendri Antoni Arief, industry

ministry spokesperson, said on Thursday. "Google's products have

not adhered to the scheme we set, so they can't be sold here."

Google said its Pixel phones were currently not

officially distributed in Indonesia.

Febri said consumers can buy Google Pixel phones overseas,

so long as they pay the necessary taxes, adding the country

would consider deactivating the phones that are illicitly sold.

The block comes a week after Indonesia said it had blocked

the sales of iPhone 16 domestically, also for not meeting local

content rules.

Companies usually increase the use of domestic

components to meet such rules through partnerships with local

suppliers or by sourcing parts domestically.

Google and Apple ( AAPL ) are not among the top smartphone makers in

Indonesia. The top two smartphone makers in the first quarter of

2024 were Chinese firm OPPO and South Korean firm Samsung

, research firm IDC said in May.

Indonesia has a huge, tech-savvy population, making the

Southeast Asian nation a key target market for tech-related

investment.

Bhima Yudhistira, director of the Center of Economic and

Law Studies think tank, said the move was "pseudo" protectionism

that hurts consumers and impacts investor confidence.

"This creates a negative sentiment for investors looking to

enter Indonesia," he said.

(Reporting by Bernadette Christina and Stanley Widianto;

Editing by Lincoln Feast.)