Leading gaming companies have already started pulling the plug on their real-money gaming operations, even as the Rajya Sabha passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill on Thursday.
In a late evening statement, Gameskraft said it is pausing ‘Add Cash’ and ‘Gameplay services’ on its rummy apps. “The withdrawal services continue to remain available under platform policies. We want to reassure that the users’ funds continue to be safe with us,” it said.
Gameskraft said it remains “committed to constructive dialogue with policymakers and stakeholders to help shape a future that safeguards players, supports innovation, and unlocks the full potential of India’s digital gaming economy.”
How are gaming firms reacting to the bill?
Zupee and Peak XV Partners-backed Probo also announced that they will shut down real-money gaming. A Zupee spokesperson said, “Our hugely popular free titles like Ludo Supreme, Ludo Turbo, Snakes & Ladders, and Trump Card Mania will continue to be available for all users for free. We remain committed to providing our services to 150+ million users at no cost.
Gaming Firm Nazara is likely to write down the value of its investment in PokerBaazi. The $122 million investment is currently being written down or provisioned, Chief Executive Officer Nitish Mittersain told Bloomberg. The company’s shares pared losses to 1.4% after falling as much as 11% in early trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange.“It’s still early days, and I’ll have to sit with my auditors, but we tend to be conservative in our accounting,” Mittersain added.
Nazara owns a 46.1% stake in Moonshine Technologies Pvt., which operates the poker platform. The firm sees no impact on its revenue or EBITDA since Moonshine’s revenue is not consolidated in the company’s financial statements.
Dream11 sees no pathway for real-money games
Dream11 (Dream Sports) CEO Harsh Jain has also reportedly told his employees that there is no legal pathway to continue real money gaming (RMG) operations once the gaming law takes effect. Sources in the company said Jain held an internal town hall meeting on Wednesday to brief the employees on the implications of the Bill.
While sources said no timeline on a transition plan was mentioned at the meeting, Entrackr reported that the company is preparing to wind down its RMG operations, which contribute more than two-thirds of the company’s annual revenue.
Dream Sports is expected to shift focus to other arms such as FanCode, DreamSetGo, Dream Game Studios and investments like Willow TV and CricBuzz. The firm is also likely to explore new game formats for overseas markets, similar to the strategy adopted by Mobile Premier League (MPL),” sources said, though no independent confirmation was available.
The development marks a near existential crisis for Dream Sports, given that over 90% of its revenues historically come from Dream11’s paid fantasy contests. Founded in 2008 by Jain and Bhavit Sheth, Dream11 has more than 280 million registered users.
In FY24 alone, the platform clocked revenues of over ₹9,600 crore, driven by record engagement during the men’s cricket World Cup.
Dream Sports is backed by ChyrsCap, Multiples, TCV, Tiger Global and was last valued at $8 billion in 2021.