A group of more than 45 video game developers have approached the central government seeking a clear distinction between real money gaming, fantasy sports, and themselves from a policy perspective.
These developers – including Outlier Games, Dot9 Games, Lucid Labs, Newgen Gaming and SuperGaming — have flagged that recent campaigns by the real money gaming industry “project a homogenous image and suggest that the entire games industry of India is adversely affected” by the proposed 28% goods and service tax (GST) on online gaming.
On July 11, the GST Council agreed to impose a levy of 28% on the full face value for online gaming, but exempted those games that are played without stakes, which will be taxed at 18%.
“Globally, irrespective of skill or chance, a clear distinction is drawn between games involving wagering (categorised as ‘iGaming’) and games without wagering (categorised as ‘video games’). Unfortunately, in India, these mutually exclusive categories have been consolidated under the common umbrella of ‘online games’,” said the letter, sent to the Prime Minister’s Office, the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY), and the ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B). ET has reviewed a copy of the letter.
“…we wish to express our sincere appreciation to the GST Council, the Department of Revenue, and the Government of India for exempting Video Games from the recent 28% GST decision. Recognising that Video Games do not involve any form of wagering or staking, we are truly grateful for this thoughtful consideration, which acknowledges the diversity of business models within our industry,” the letter added.
