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Tech giant Google on Friday announced its decision to pause its experiment aimed at expanding the number of real-money gaming (RMG) apps on its Play Store in countries without a central licensing framework.
In January this year, Google said it would allow more RMG apps, including those not covered under a licensing framework, on its Play Store in India, Mexico, and Brazil. It said that it would also charge a service fee from these apps.
The “expanded RMG support” was to come into effect from July 1 for developers in the aforementioned countries, with plans to extend the service to more countries later.
“Expanding our support of real-money gaming apps in markets without a central licensing framework has proven more difficult than expected and we need additional time to get it right for our developer partners and the safety of our users,” said a Google spokesperson.
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The company said it remains “deeply committed” to helping all developers responsibly build new businesses and reach wider audiences across a variety of content types and genres.
“We’re working hard to develop a thoughtful framework – and in the meantime, in India, we are extending the grace period of the pilot programme so existing apps offering DFS and rummy games in India can remain on Play and users can continue to enjoy them. We hope to have further updates in the coming months on a path forward,” the spokesperson added.
The move comes at a time when Indian RMG firms are grappling with a 28 per cent blanket tax on online gaming.
Previously, skill gaming platforms paid an 18 per cent GST on platform fees, also known as gross gaming revenue.
The new rules, which came into effect on October 1, 2023, do not distinguish between games of skill or chance.
In 2022, Google launched a pilot programme enabling the distribution of daily fantasy sports and rummy apps to users in India.
It ended on September 28, 2023. Google, however, provided a grace period for the existing pilot apps to remain on Google Play until January 15, 2024, which was extended to June 30, 2024, and has now been deferred indefinitely.
Industry stakeholders have rebuffed the move, stating that the situation underscores the imminent need for “ex-ante competition regulation” and the swift implementation of the Digital Competition Bill.
“We are disappointed by Google's arbitrary and anti-competitive decision, not having an inclusive policy and discriminating is a form of gatekeeping and market distortion. The disregard for Indian law, encouragement of anti-competitive practices, and limiting user choice by a private entity was alarming. Their decision grants them unchecked control to pick winners in the market, favouring large companies and preventing small and emerging startups from effectively competing in this sector,” said Roland Landers, CEO of industry body All India Gaming Federation.
