Urgent Call for National Regulation in India's Booming Online Gaming Sector

An expert committee from Gujarat National Law University emphasizes the need for stronger, nationally consistent regulation for online gaming in India. The committee's report highlights the sector's economic potential and stresses that effective user protection requires a balanced regulatory framework, cautioning against restrictive government interventions.

Gujarat National Law University (GNLU) has convened an expert committee calling for stronger, nationally consistent regulations for online gaming in India.

The report, titled 'Evaluating Blanket Bans and Mandatory Limits in Gaming,' underlines the economic potential of the burgeoning online gaming sector and emphasizes consumer protection through balanced regulations.

Expert findings suggest India hosted 568 million online gamers and saw over 9.5 billion gaming app downloads in 2023, accounting for 15% of global mobile game downloads. Though amendments to regulatory frameworks have been proposed, the delay in notifying self-regulatory bodies has stalled progress, prompting states like Tamil Nadu to consider their own regulations.

Amid various state laws and interpretations of 'games of skill,' the expert committee refutes restrictive governmental interventions as non-viable, advocating instead for educated, responsible gaming tools and industry standards.

(With inputs from agencies.)