Indonesia Proposes AI Bill to Compensate Publishers, Sparking Innovation and Regulation Debate
July 17, 2026
The policy echoes Australia’s 2021 News Media Bargaining Code, which facilitated deals between platforms and publishers and redirected ad revenue to journalism.
Industry stakeholders warn such measures could constrain innovation and raise compliance burdens for platforms.
Indonesia positions itself as pursuing tech sovereignty by treating data protection as national wealth and cultural preservation, potentially shaping global regulatory approaches.
The story sits alongside EU transparency rules for AI-generated or modified media and broader AI governance discussions in international forums.
This move signals a broader shift toward digital sovereignty and may influence how developing nations govern data used to train AI.
Indonesia has drafted a bill to regulate AI-generated content and require compensation for publishers, aiming to protect human creators by mandating tech firms pay for news content used in AI training.
The draft faces concerns over being too broad and potentially hindering innovation, with tech giants like Google signaling caution and a willingness to engage with the government.
The text is not final and is open to input from multiple stakeholders, with officials pointing to global debates on AI and copyright and noting related court cases on AI-trained copyrighted material.
Responses from Meta and TikTok on the proposal have not yet been disclosed in the report.
Enforcement challenges include proving which data influenced outputs, auditing training data, and handling jurisdictional issues when training occurs outside Indonesia.
Proponents argue mandatory licensing and data registries address the power imbalance from data scraping, while opponents warn of potential stifling of innovation and harm to local startups.
The article stresses the need for careful execution, exemptions for small developers, and robust auditing to prevent loopholes and protect creators effectively.
Summary based on 24 sources
Get a daily email with more Tech stories
Sources

Economic Times • Jul 17, 2026
Indonesia's copyright rewrite puts Google, AI platforms on notice
Economic Times • Jul 17, 2026
Indonesia's copyright rewrite puts Google, AI platforms on notice
Tribune • Jul 17, 2026
Indonesia's copyright rewrite puts Google, AI platforms on notice
Yahoo News Canada • Jul 17, 2026
Indonesia's copyright rewrite puts Google, AI platforms on notice