India makes rules for online gambling, but there is still opposition.

India still has trouble figuring out what is and isn’t gambling. But people say it’s ready to move forward. After months of talking about it, the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) said on Monday that a draft of a law that could lead to online gambling becoming popular across the country is now ready for review.

Among the measures in the online gambling draft are rules that must be followed and ways to file complaints. Operators would have to tell regulators about their games and can only offer games that have been approved.

The draft of the law is missing one important part. Online sports betting on the outcome of games is still not an option, even though it is clear that there is an element of “skill” that makes it different from gambling.

Gender-Based Approach

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Minister of State for Electronics and IT, said that between 40% and 45% of gamers in India are women. This number was a big reason why rules were made to “keep the gaming ecosystem safe.”

He also said that online gambling is an important part of a trillion-dollar economy and an important part of the global startup ecosystem. Chandrasekhar promised that the government would help startups and new ideas in the gaming industry so that they could get a piece of that market.

The proposed rules stress being a good gambler. India’s Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, which go into effect in 2021, are pushing them forward. The goal is to regulate online gambling, cut down on gambling on the black market, and make sure that people do their due diligence.

India’s online gaming industry will set up an organization to regulate itself. It will be run by a board of directors with people from different fields, such as online games, public policy, IT, psychology, and medicine.

Regulator

The regulator will be in charge of making sure the games are what they say they are. “Sovereignty and integrity of India” says that they can’t offer any content that could hurt India. This includes, among other things, content that is violent, addictive, or sexual.

The MeitY is now taking comments on the draft rules, which means that the final rules might look different. Chandrasekhar says it’s possible that there could be more than one self-regulator, depending on the feedback the government gets.

Even though the rules are likely to change, there are some things that will always be a part of them. Know-your-customer procedures and money sources that can be checked will be at the heart of the rules. The Reserve Bank of India, which is the country’s central bank, will be very important in all of these things.

There is hope for online gaming

By 2025, the online gambling business in India could bring in INR413.22 billion (US$5 billion). This is what a report from Sequoia, a venture capital firm, and BCG, a management consulting firm, says. The government says that the industry grew by 38% between 2017 and 2020. The growth rate was 8% in China and 10% in the US, according to the same research.

Sequoia and BCG expect a growth rate of 15% per year through 2024. That would let it get to INR153 billion, which is about $1.85 billion.

The gaming industry is happy about the news because it means more stability and more chances to grow. Different Indian states have their own rules about gambling, so a uniform policy across the whole country would make things less confusing.