Gaming Industry India

Draft policy paves way for eSports' pan-Indian play, gaming reforms

It will, however, take a lot more than formal recognition from the government or sponsors to bring e-sports to the grassroots, according to experts and industry players

Gameskraft lays off 120 staff after real money gaming ban in India

Gameskraft has laid off 120 employees as the online gaming ban shutters its core real-money business, extending health cover till March 2026 and pledging re-hiring priority

Krafton India to launch third edition of gaming incubator KIGI on Sept 20

Krafton India will open registrations for the third edition of its gaming incubator programme, KIGI, on September 20 to support local studios with funding, mentorship, and resources

Zupee launches Studio short video platform after RMG ban in India

Zupee has launched Zupee Studio, a short video content platform with 1-3 min episodes, weeks after India banned all forms of real money gaming nationwide

Gameskraft reports decline in net profit after ₹231 crore siphoning case

Online gaming firm Gameskraft Technologies Ltd has filed a police complaint against its former CFO for allegedly siphoning off over Rs 231 crore -- whose write-off led to a decline in the company's FY25 net profit. The Bengaluru-based firm on Friday reported a net profit of Rs 706 crore on a revenue of Rs 4,009 crore in the fiscal year 2024-25 (April 2024 to March 2025). This compared with Rs 947 crore net profit on a revenue of Rs 3,475 crore in the previous year. The company said FY25 was the first full year of 28 per cent GST tax on its operations. The previous year earning was factoring in a six-month impact of the newly introduced GST regime for the online gaming sector. The 2024-25 profit was also impacted by "a one-time accounting adjustment of past unsanctioned transactions amounting to approximately Rs 231 crore," it said in a statement. While the company did not elaborate on the nature of unsanctioned transactions, sources with knowledge of the matter said the write-off .

A23 parent Head Digital Works moves K'taka HC against new online gaming law

The company's move comes as most of its competitors, including Zupee, Dream11 parent Dream Sports, Pokerbaazi parent firm Moonshine Technology, and Gameskraft, have decided against opposing the law

Gameskraft suspends Rummy Culture, will not challenge India's RMG ban

Gameskraft, operator of Rummy Culture, has suspended all RMG services and said it will not legally challenge the new gaming ban while ensuring user withdrawals remain available

Nodwin Gaming acquires Sony's stake in e-sports event Championship Evo

Nodwin Gaming acquires a majority stake in Evo, expanding its presence in the global fighting games e-sports market.

Casual gaming market set to gain from govt's ban on RMG platforms

The government's blanket ban on real money gaming platforms may shift demand towards casual, midcore and AAA titles that rely on in-app purchases and advertising for growth

RMG platforms suspend paid contests to comply with new gaming law

Real money gaming apps like Dream11, Zupee, and Probo suspend paid contests following the passing of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which introduces severe penalties.

Real-money gaming dealt a losing hand as crackdown follows ₹20,000 cr blow

Experts and industry players warn that the move could backfire by driving users toward unregulated offshore betting platforms

Lok Sabha clears Bill to ban real-money gaming: Countdown begins

Cleared by the Union Cabinet on Tuesday, the Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha earlier in day. Senior officials described it as a balanced measure, defending the government's decision to outlaw RMG

Real money gaming firms on shaky grounds after increased 40% GST

Real money gaming firms say a proposed 40 per cent GST could drive users offshore or force closures, adding to the stress already caused by the 28 per cent levy imposed in 2023

Nazara's stake in Nodwin to drop below 50% after internal fundraise

Nazara Technologies will cease to hold a majority stake in Nodwin Gaming after opting out of the latter's internal fundraise, but remains its largest shareholder

Real money gaming sector seeks unified regulatory playbook amid scrutiny

Currently, states such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra are at varying stages of enforcing their own rules for the industry

PlayboxTV to invest nearly ₹25 cr in content arm, eyes ₹100 cr ARR

OTT aggregator platform PlayboxTV has lined up an investment of around Rs 25 crore in the next 18 months to grow its newly-launched vertical-format content segment and expects annual recurring revenue of Rs 100 crore, a top company official said on Tuesday. The OTT application enhances a customer's experience by listing movies, TV shows and web series from over 30 OTT apps with more than 350 channels across 10 languages. The platform has made a strategic entry into the fast-growing micro-dramas segment with the launch of vertical content feature PlayShots. "We have lined up an investment of around Rs 25 crore in the next 18 months to grow the new vertical (PlayShots)," Aamir Mulani, Founder & CEO of PlayboxTV said. The OTT platform expects annual recurring revenue of Rs 100 crore from the vertical, he added. Available directly within the PlayboxTV app, PlayShots will offer viewers gripping, original Indian stories -- all in under 10 minutes, he said. Mulani said vertical-format ..

Nazara Tech completes acquisition of UK-based Curve Games for ₹247 cr

Nazara Technologies acquires Curve Games in a ₹247 crore deal, aiming to expand into the $100 billion PC-console gaming market and enable global growth from India

Time spent on gaming grows 30%, 18-30 ages dominate India's market

Lumikai report shows gaming time in India rose to 13 hours a week in 2024, driven by young users aged 18-30, with UPI accelerating in-game payments and monetisation

Indie Game Utsav X Comic Con announces offers on Steam for Indian games

The Comic Con X Indie Game Utsav Steam sale is live now and it will end on April 20. Gamers can purchase Indie or Indian-origin games at discounts until then

Krafton acquires controlling stake in Nautilus Mobile for Rs 118 crore

Company's decision to acquire a controlling stake follows its initial investment of Rs 40.5 cr in Nautilus in 2022. The Pune-based game studio has developed the cricket gaming franchise Real Cricket