Khaberni - Two of the most densely populated countries in the world and the largest markets targeted by social media platforms have joined the growing global wave of banning social media platforms for teenagers and minors, threatening the businesses of the companies responsible for them, according to a Bloomberg report.
The report noted that the Indian state of Karnataka, which includes the vibrant technological hub of Bengaluru at its heart, was the first state to propose a ban on access to social media platforms for those under the age of 16. Indonesia has adopted the same approach, describing platforms such as "Instagram" and "TikTok" as high-risk platforms.
A report published by the British "Financial Times" described Indonesia as the largest economy in Southeast Asia and one of the markets heavily targeted by social media platforms, alongside Karnataka being a major contributor to the country's technology sector.
Indonesia's Minister of Digital Affairs, Muthia Hafid, stated that the decision will start being implemented on March 28, covering several social media platforms such as YouTube, X, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, along with the game "Roblox," which includes social interaction elements according to the report of the newspaper.
She added, "This decision was taken because the risks facing children in the digital space have become increasingly real," noting that these risks include pornography, cyberbullying, online fraud, and digital addiction.
While the decision to ban platforms in India is still limited to the state of Karnataka only, the likelihood of implementing the decision across all states of the country, which has more than 1.4 billion people, poses a source of concern and threat to social media platforms according to the newspaper report.
India leads globally in the rate of downloading social media apps, with more than 1.35 billion downloads last year alone, compared to 711 million downloads in the United States, according to a report by "Sensor Tower" website for app download statistics.
The "Financial Times" report suggests that this ban decision might turn into a diplomatic conflict between New Delhi and Washington, against the background of upcoming trade negotiations expected between the two countries.
It's also noted that Australia was one of the first countries that decided to ban social media platforms for teenagers and minors, followed by several European governments taking the same steps.
In turn, French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the Indonesian decision to ban social media platforms, in a post he shared on his personal account on the X platform.
