INDIAN GAMING STATESIDE


Rajeev Chandrasekhar backs GST Council’s decision to levy 28% tax on online real money gaming


Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for MeitY, supported the GST Council’s decision on online gaming, calling it a “well-thought-out preliminary measure.” It is to be noted that the decision is being termed as a clarification by the government to levy 28% GST on the sector on the full face value amount. Chandrasekhar said that the Council took


three years to come to this conclusion which involved much deliberation with its members. The announcement, however, has shaken the online real money gaming industry to its core. The industry, time and time again, had requested the government not to levy GST on full face value as it will lead to closing down of many entities, especially the startups. Some of these major repercussions feared are declining player count, lower FDI and job losses. The industry’s concerns can be gauged


further from what the Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra has revealed. In FY23, the tax collection from the sector was around Rs 1,700 crore which is estimated to be only 2% of the total industry turnover. With the new


Rajeev Chandrasekhar


GST implementation, it is estimated to be between Rs 15,000-20,000 crore in FY24. The industry has claimed that the real money


games are actionable claims that do not amount to gambling, but Malhotra clarifi ed that any online game when played with an expectation of an outcome becomes taxable. Chandrasekhar said that as soon as MeitY completes formulating regulations for online


Google’s new policy allows apps with digital assets on Play Store


Google’s latest marketplace policy update have paved the way for apps containing asset that can be purchased and bought with digital tokens. “Today, we’re pleased to share that we’re updating our policy to open new ways to transact blockchain- based digital content within apps and games on Google Play,” says an offi cial post by Group Product Manager at Google Play, Joseph Mills. The step was taken in order to reimagine traditional games with user-owned content and boost user loyalty through NFT rewards. While there are a lot of factors to be kept in mind,


the company claims that they have put user safety forefront. Google has placed a few terms to keep the apps providing non-fungible token (NFT) assets transparent. These are – 1. If an app provides access to purchase or earning digital assets, it is required for the developers to inform the users.


2. The developers also cannot advertise any potential earnings through playing or trading.


3. The developers also cannot sell NFTs for which the value is not clear to the users. This also includes randomized blockchain-based items from loot boxes.


Digital assets, in general, can be sold like regular


items for a price or can be given out just for playing the game. Trading or selling does not seem to be an option for these digital assets as of now, as Google does not have a community market or anything of the sort. It seems players can only use them in the game. A prime example currently is Reddit’s crypto


wallets and NFT avatars. People can currently create an NFT wallet on Reddit and buy avatars, although they can only be used for that purpose only. The general idea that people normally get after


hearing about NFTs is the ability to trade and sell them. With no information regarding trading, it remains to be seen how much the NFT introduction will help a game, especially where there are not many success stories of games with NFTs making record earnings.


Founded by industry veterans, G2G News is an independent news portal covering all developments relating to online gaming, poker, gambling, casino,


cricket betting and esports in India and the Indian subcontinent.


www.g2g.news AUGUST 2023 25


gaming, they will work with the GST Council hand in hand to bring uniformity as to which games are skill-based and which ones are harmful. Meanwhile, the draft amendment to the


GST law has been shared with all states for comment and is expected to be introduced during the monsoon session of the Parliament, starting July 20.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56