More than 40 organizations in India that produce video games have requested that the government differentiate between video games and those which involve real money.

In recent years, the amount of betting and athletics imaginary apps in India has risen sharply. Taking into account that India is home to one of the greatest sports contests on the planet – the Indian Premier League – and the great accessibility of cheaper phones, investors are consistently attempting to find the next big sports business application or web-based poker game. This situation has become so immensely prominent that even Indian celebrities have been included in their advertising.

It’s becoming more and more popular to use real money apps in the country, however the overall effects on society are damaging. Unfortunately, news stories often cite people who have taken their own life due to them losing everything while gambling or betting. Moreover, those who make video games are finding it challenging to get investors since they prefer the fast cash investment apps have to offer. Additionally, the fact these apps have reworked and hijacked the phrase “online gaming” for their own promotions, is extremely annoying.

The recently announced MEITY regulations for real money apps have the potential to be too encompassing by combining gambling apps and actual game apps into one category. This has caused concern among more than 40 Indian video game and esports companies who are asking the ministry to create a clear, separate distinction between the two.

The Outlier Games, located in Chennai, have banded together with other video game businesses with the aim of having a conference with MEITY. They wish to bring forward their knowledge, differentiate between online gaming and betting, and help foster appropriate controls for the sector in India.

SuperGaming and Outlier Games issued a press release indicating that the proposed notification groups together “video games” and “games played online for money” as subject to the same legislation, which could hinder the purpose of the initiative undertaken by the Federal and State government.

It is apparent that there is a clear division between the traditional video game and esports industry and the “real money games played for stakes” industry. This is clearly represented in the fact that no country in the world takes revenue from the RMG industry into consideration when considering data points like revenue generation and taxes. The worldwide video game and esports industry is projected to be worth 184 billion USD in 2022 and this figure does not include money from Fantasy Sports and Real Money Games.

MEITY is the same government body that prohibited PUBG, alongside another 117 Chinese mobile applications. This shows that the ministry is willing to make drastic decisions which would significantly impact both video game creators and real money gaming developers. Bearing this in mind, the coalition of game developers reached out to the ministry.

As the population and preferences of Indian gamers expand, it is essential that the regulations adapt accordingly, according to Roby John, CEO and co-founder of SuperGaming. There should be a definitive delimitation between video games and gaming with real money to safeguard the 500+ million gamers in India.

The coalition endeavors to propose three main proposals - a distinct regulatory gap between “video games” and “online games that are wagered on”, the formation of a specifically Indian rating system similar to the ESRB, and a structure to address video game dependency, exposure to in-game acquisitions, and online damaged behavior.