Insufficient information on the online gaming sector has resulted in an “ambiguity of perception” among the public. That’s one of the challenges that the industry is facing right now, despite its rapidly growing popularity in India.
Roland Landers, CEO of All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), recently discussed the exponential growth that online gaming is currently enjoying, as well as the challenges the sector faces. In an interview with AnimationXpress, Landers said: “Online gaming and streaming have seen a new boom, with game-play increasing three-folds on the online platform, with many online skill gaming platforms reporting three times’ more user engagement and higher traffic in mobile gaming.”
This year, Landers sees the sector “becoming more interactive, immersive and social” as gaming technologies become “more affordable”—he expects Cloud gaming services like Arcade and Google Stadia will be introduced, along with advanced augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) as the design emphasis makes a shift towards “localized themes and games.” Landers noted, “Many indigenous game developers are building titles in multiple local languages for customized content.”
Device wise, the AIGF executive forecast better smartphone penetration with affordable and faster data access, alongside growth of digital ecosystem for payments amid growing investments as the sector sees “increased recognition and growing popularity amongst youngsters.”
The mass availability of affordable mobile phones and high-speed internet penetration, coupled with affordable data plans, has pushed India’s largely mobile-first gaming market to the global top spot in terms of mobile game downloads with 7.3 billion installs, or 17 percent market share of installed volume, according to SensorTower data.
In terms of value, the country’s gaming industry shot up from $62 billion in FY 2019 to S90 billion in FY 2020—largely due to the growth of engagement amid the ongoing coronavirus lockdowns. Casual entertainment games on the SevenJackpots platform, which have real money gaming components, along with esports and mobile cricket betting at 10Cric have also contributed to India’s gaming industry growth.
A separate report by Nikkei Asia quoted Pankaj Karma, managing director of Maple Capital Partners, who said, “India is at an inflection point on online gaming with traffic exceeding 15% of global gaming traffic… Games involving real money saw the biggest growth of 40% through the lockdown, with fantasy sports standing out.”
Despite its growing popularity, the online gaming sector still faces what Landers describes as “an ambiguity of perception amongst the public.” This, he said, is due to the insufficient information available about the industry.
This also doesn’t help move gambling’s legal position forward. The legal status of the gambling industry in India needs to be revamped, so the regulation becomes more uniform across the states in the country. As a SevenJackpots report points out, “Regulation is intended to simplify complex situations. Public interest is the driving force behind most such decisions, and the result is legal standards, definitions, and ‘red lines.’”
The good news, however, is that the gaming industry is working hard to bring “due attention” to the sector, Landers said, adding, “Currently, the gaming industry follows a self-regulatory model, which incorporates the necessary checks and balances to ensure sufficient responsible gaming and protection of gamers. Regulating this sunrise sector can boost investment trends in states, create jobs and contribute economically.”