Government officials, including IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, met with firms impacted by the Online Gaming Bill, 2025 to address implications and ensure an orderly transition for real-money game operators. The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, passed by parliament in August, bans real-money games while excluding online and social games and esports from regulation. Many real-money platforms, such as Dream11, MPL, and Zupee, have wound down operations and are coordinating with payment intermediaries to protect user funds and comply with the new laws. Some companies, including operators of rummy and poker, have challenged the ban in court.
Government officials, including Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, reportedly held discussions with firms impacted by the Online Gaming Bill, 2025, on Monday. The IT minister is said to have met representatives and industry stakeholders to talk about the implications of the bill, which recently received parliamentary approval, and stress upon "orderly transition" for firms that offered real money games, which were banned under the new rules.
According to a Moneycontrol report, citing government sources, the discussions between Vaishnaw and industry representatives focussed on the promotion of online and social games and esports, which remain outside the ambit of the new gaming regulations. The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, which was passed by the parliament in August, only seeks to ban real money games, many of which have operated in India in a legally grey area claiming to be skill-based games.
In the meeting with firms that operated real money games until the ban, government officials reportedly highlighted the importance of an "orderly transition" for impacted companies and called for measures to safeguard users' money. Many such real money gaming platforms, including Dream11, MPL, and Zupee, have wound down operations in the aftermath of the ban. Impacted companies reportedly informed government officials that they were shutting down real money gaming operations and working with payment intermediaries to ensure compliance with the new laws.
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