Minister for Digital Communications and MSMEs Agree to Create Digital Fairness for MSMEs
Jakarta (ANTARA) — Minister for Digital Communications (Menkomdigi) Meutya Hafid and Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Maman Abdurrahman met at the Ministry of Digital Communications, Central Jakarta, and both agreed to support the creation of digital fairness for MSMEs, particularly in marketplaces (lokapasar).
This commitment was conveyed in response to steps by several marketplace electronic system providers (PSE lokapasar) that have recently repeatedly raised service fees, passing the costs onto MSMEs.
“The Minister said that there will certainly be good cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Communications if violations of regulations protecting MSMEs in the digital sphere are found. And we say we are ready; this is certainly our duty,” Meutya said in a brief interview at the Ministry of Digital Communications in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Moreover, with the preparation of a Ministerial Regulation for MSMEs focusing on protecting MSMEs in the digital marketplace, which is currently being enacted, Meutya hopes that marketplace PSEs can make the necessary adjustments soon.
“From now on, app operators must understand that there are new rules. They must start adjusting to comply with the new rules, rather than moving in a direction contrary to the rules,” Meutya said.
The Ministry of MSMEs will focus on protecting and enhancing the competitiveness of micro and small enterprises in the digital space.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Digital Communications has the authority to engage directly with the digital ecosystem, including ensuring access for marketplace PSEs in Indonesia.
According to Maman, the current transaction dynamics experienced by MSMEs on marketplaces are unfair because marketplace PSEs have unilaterally raised service fees without prior notification to sellers on their platforms.
One of the issues widely discussed is TikTok Shop, which is known to have raised service fees to sellers across multiple components, effective from 18 May 2026. Not long after, TikTok Shop also announced that they would charge shipping costs for returns to sellers effective from 1 June 2026.
“I think things like this are not fair. And even in this discussion this has already abused the market,” he said.
Therefore, the ministry is continuing to strive to optimise protection for MSMEs in the digital realm, including by drafting a dedicated Ministerial Regulation for this.
Among the measures to be set out in the Ministerial Regulation, according to Maman, is to encourage platforms to offer a 50 per cent discount on service fees for micro and small enterprises.
Furthermore, digital platforms will be required to inform MSMEs at least three months before implementing any changes to service fees.