The Union Cabinet of India has approved an online gaming bill that proposes to ban real-money gaming, fantasy sports, poker, rummy and online lotteries, according to local media.
The bill will look to introduce a legal framework for the sector in the world’s most populated country, where some real-money games of skill are currently allowed.
Advertising gambling and offshore betting is illegal, but marketing online real-money games is permitted in some of India’s states due to the games requiring “a predominance of skill”.
The bill has since been tabled in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament, today, 20 August, according to The Times of India.
Should it pass, India will promote esports and online social games while outlawing real-money games.
These have been defined as games that require paying a fee, depositing money or other stakes with the expectation of monetary returns.
Operators face three years in prison and fines of up to INR10m (£85,111) should they offer real-money gaming, while advertising platforms could be handed a two-year prison sentence and fine of INR5m (£42,555).
Financial firms involved in transactions face three-year prison sentences and a fine of INR10m.
A national authority will be created should the bill be approved, which will regulate games and deal with game categorisation and registration, complaints and determine whether a game will be viewed as a real-money game.
India TV News has reported one of the key provisions in the bill is a ban on celebrities and public figures promoting igaming apps.
It also noted the bill’s main objective was to protect children from suffering gambling-related harm, with a government official being quoted as saying: “This bill will help steer youth away from harmful distractions and reduce the adverse effects these games have on society”.
Calls for a regulated sector in India are not new. The All India Gaming Federation’s CEO Roland Landers said in March that a central regulatory framework was needed to combat the country’s black market, following a report that was published claiming Parimatch, Stake, 1xBet and Batery Bet had 1.6 billion visits in Q4 2024.
He noted that the federation had been “advocating for a central regulatory framework for the past many years”.
Last month, the Indian government announced it had issued blocking orders against 1,524 illegal gambling sites in the last three years.
It also issued a summons to officials from tech giants Meta and Google as part of an ongoing investigation into gambling advertising in India.
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Local media reports government-backed framework would prohibit real-money games over addiction fears, with full bill to be presented in the lower house today
The post Approved India online gaming bill would ban real-money gaming first appeared on EGR Intel.