NEW DELHI: The Union government on Thursday released new rules for online gaming, which prohibit any game that involves betting and wagering, and entail a framework of multiple self-regulatory organisations (SROs) to determine whether a real-money game is permitted or not.
There will be multiple self-regulatory organisations, and these SROs will have participation from all the stakeholders including but not limited to the industry.
Permissibility will be determined with the simple principle of whether wagering is involved and "if wagering is involved, the SRO will be in a position to say that those online games are not permissible".
"We are dealing with a framework which allows for all online gaming to be determined as permissible or not, by an SRO and there will be multiple SROs," Minister of State for IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar told reporters here.
Chandrasekhar explained that while online gaming presented a huge opportunity for startups, there had been an ambiguity around what was permissible, which the new rules aimed to address.
‘Online real money game’ means an online game where a user makes a deposit in cash or kind with the expectation of earning winnings on that deposit.
Welcoming the new online gaming roles, Roland Landers, CEO, All India Gaming Federation, said: “...we are grateful to MeitY for notifying the amendments to regulate online gaming under the Indian Information Technology Act, and acknowledging the long-standing demand of the gamers and the online gaming industry. We believe this is a decisive first step for comprehensive regulation for online gaming and, will propel the industry to compete globally."
“The notification of MeitY rules marks a pivotal moment for the online gaming industry in India. It is expected to put an end to the ambiguities that the industry was grappling with and lay the foundation for sustainable and responsible growth of the industry. India’s online gaming industry has already attracted $2.5 billion in FDI and we are hopeful that this will propel the industry to great heights and encourage innovation. We look forward to engaging with MeitY to seek requisite clarifications as our members initiate the compliance process," said Joy Bhattacharjya, director-general, Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports.
- Log in to post comments