The government will impose restrictions on online gaming and real-money games to address concerns regarding addiction particularly among children and young adults.
According to a report in The Economic Times, “A consensus on this method, which has also been adopted in China, emerged in the recent internal meetings of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology during which various aspects of the Information Technology Rules of 2021 were discussed”.
Rather than depending on self-regulatory organisations (SRO) to determine the permissibility of games, the government is exploring the possibility of imposing time limits as a more proactive approach.
What are the proposed guidelines?
The time and spending limits would necessitate mechanisms from gaming companies to ensure adherence in India, as per a report by The Economic Times.
One possibility is to ensure spending curbs on a player’s past expenditure and age. This move follows the IT ministry’s April 2023 amendment to the IT Rules, granting gaming companies and industry bodies 90 days to form an SRO. However, the government can also set up its own SRO if the industry proposals were deemed unsuitable.
The ministry rejected three proposals received for the SRO formation, including submitted by Esports Welfare Association, a collaboration between the Esports Federation of India (EGF) and the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS), and the All India Gaming Federation, according to a report by The Economic Times.
India stands as one of the largest gaming markets globally, boasting approximately 570 million active gamers. A significant portion of these gamers, about 25% or so, are involved in real-money gaming activities.
What are the Gaming Rules in China?
In November 2019, players under the age of 18 were banned from playing games for longer than 90 minutes per day for three hours on public holidays in China. These rules were further tightened in August 2021, when those under-18 years can only play for one hour on Fridays, weekend and public holidays.
What are the Online Gaming Rules in India?
According to the government, “permissible online games are those games, real money or otherwise, that do not involve wagering, user harm in its content and do not create any addictive consequences for children.”
• The government will set up several SROs with representatives from various sectors. These SROs will decide if a game is allowed or not.
• Gaming firms or platforms must not offer, publish, or share online games that have harmful or banned content. They must verify the identity of online gamers.
• Online games that involve any kind of gambling (including ads) will be prohibited.
• SROs will also make sure games follow guidelines to prevent addiction and mental harm through parental controls, frequent warning messages, and age-rating systems.
• The gamers will have the option to opt-out after reaching their own limits for time or money spent.
What is an SRO?
Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs) will ensure whether an online game is permissible or not, based on whether it involves wagering or betting. Three SROs will be initially notified, but the government can add more later.
The new rules also dictate that SROs include an educationist, an expert in the field of psychology or mental health, and an individual who is or has been a member or officer of an organisation dealing with the protection of child rights.
What is the Aim of Online Gaming Rules?
The government wants to ensure the rules prevent user harm such as self-harm and psychological harm, from online gaming; safeguard children from inappropriate or harmful online games by using parental or access control and age-rating mechanism; reduce the risk of gaming addiction, financial loss and financial fraud by warning users repeatedly and allowing them to exclude themselves upon user-defined limits being reached for time or money spent; ensure that online real money games are not against the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India.