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Raging against the machine: Gamers, users go viral against DSP ban
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No quarter: Professional and casual gamers as well as ordinary users discovered on Saturday that they had lost access to several digital service providers (DSPs), including Epic Games, Stream as well as Yahoo! and PayPal, as the Communications and Information Ministry made good on its promise to block providers that did not comply with a controversial regulation. (Pexels/Rodnae Production) (Pexels/Rodnae Production)
F
ollowing the government’s ban on several gaming platforms and other DSPs for not complying with a controversial regulation, local gamers, developers and ordinary users have taken the fight online.
It did not take long for the wider public to find out on Saturday that the Communications and Information Ministry blocked their access to eight digital service providers (DSPs) that had yet to comply with a recent ministerial regulation.
One look at the social media chatter, and their outrage is apparent.
The ministry blocked the game distribution and streaming platforms Epic Games, Steam and Origin, as well as the online games Dota 2 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which have become household names among Indonesian gamers.
The ministry also blocked three other privately operated platforms: PayPal, Yahoo! and Xandr.
These eight DSPs have yet to comply with the ministry’s controversial 2020 regulation that authorizes it to block providers that do not register with the government’s Online Single Submission (OSS) business licensing system and other requirements, including the provisions on data disclosure.
The move has blocked not only casual and professional players from accessing the games, but also freelance workers as well as general users from accessing the PayPal payment platform, prompting an unprecedented backlash on social media.
