The Indian government has proposed a constitution of a self-regulatory body to regulate online gaming companies. The body is set to begin public consultations on the draft online gaming policy and will certify what is permitted as ‘online games’ in the country, revealed Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology (IT) Rajeev Chandrasekhar in a press conference on Monday. The draft online gaming proposes a verification of users and measures to safeguard users against the risk of gaming addiction and financial loss. The move comes amid rising concerns over youngsters getting addicted to games and businesses being disrupted by patchy state laws.
“The rules regulate betting. It is basically a prohibition of wagering on any game. The SRO will determine whether it is a permitted game or not,” Chandrasekhar said. “The online games that offer winnings, any game that allows wagering on the outcome is effectively a no-go area. If you bet on the outcome of a game it is prohibited under 3(b) 10 of the IT rules” An online gaming intermediary is defined as an intermediary that offers one or more online games.
“…the intermediary shall, before hosting or publishing or advertising an online game for a consideration, ascertain from the online gaming intermediary and verify from the concerned self-regulatory body,” the draft rules said.
