🐘India🇮🇳: the nationwide ban on all real-money online games (including poker, betting, and fantasy sports) threatens not only the gaming industry but also the sports sector

🐘India🇮🇳: the nationwide ban on all real-money online games (including poker, betting, and fantasy sports) threatens not only the gaming industry but also the sports sector

In August, Indian lawmakers passed the “Online Gaming Promotion and Regulation Act,” which prohibits banks and payment providers from processing transactions related to real-money gaming. The problem is that the law was rushed through without debate, and regulators overlooked several critical operational aspects.

▶️Offenders face fines of up to USD 113,000 and/or prison sentences of up to 3 years.

▶️Celebrities and influencers who promote real-money gaming can also be held criminally liable.

▶️Context: India’s federal IT minister claimed that online gaming caused Indian players to lose USD 2.26 billion, leading in some cases to “depression and suicides.” However, no supporting evidence was provided.

▶️Overlooked issues:

⚠️People will not stop playing; instead of turning to legal operators (who pay taxes to the government), they will shift to illegal platforms.

⚠️Declaring a platform illegal after years of oversight, taxation, and judicial recognition is not only wrong but highly unethical.

⚠️The real-money gaming sector faces a sharp reduction in jobs.

▶️Case in point: Dream11, whose revenues collapsed by 95% following the ban, was forced to shut down its fantasy sports platform and terminate a landmark sponsorship deal with the Cricket Control Board.

▶️Outcome: representatives of the affected industries have filed a petition with the Supreme Court of India.

#news #India #gambling

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