Gaming firms hail task force proposals

Experts said the recommendations, if implemented, will be providing a big boost to India’s gaming industry, especially for developers, and India will be in a position to develop more big-ticket games. It will also help create more intellectual property (IP) in gaming, they added.

The task force was set up in April by the Centre to offer suggestions on promoting animations, visual effects, gaming, comics, and extended reality, in addition to creating more jobs, raising funds and providing support to gaming startups.

It has suggested a ‘Create in India’ campaign, setting up of a development fund for the industry, easy access to micro-loans for the AVGC sector, and taxation-related incentives.

“The India AVGC mission as envisioned will help in more local content and IP creation, and help take Indian stories to the world. The Annual Gaming Expo and the Game Development Fund, will help the industry provide more opportunities for MSME players to get access to resources and partnerships, and lead to a rise in games with Indian ethos,” Roland Landers, chief executive, All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), said.

With the right incentives and technical knowledge, the number of AAA gaming titles developed in India will grow, he added. AAA games are high-budget games, which have long marketing programs attached to them, and lead to development of films and merchandise around them, such as French publisher Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed and Microsoft’s Halo.

India is one of the fastest-growing gaming markets in the world. According to a November report by gaming-focused investor Lumikai, India’s gaming market clocked $2.6 billion in revenue in FY22 and is likely to grow to $8.6 billion by FY27. The average revenue per paying user grew 11% to $20 a year in FY22, the report said.

Even so, game development work, especially for AAA titles, is minimal compared to the US, Europe, South Korea or Japan, despite the fact that a lot of work for such games, like creating artwork, is done by Indian companies like Lakshya Digital. Though some global firms like Rockstar and Ubisoft have set up local studios, core game development happens in the US and other markets.

According to experts, the task force’s recommendations can help make India emerge as a developers’ hub. “Till now Indian studios were working on the ideas and services provided by foreign firms. Establishing studios and game development platforms in our own country and publishing games will provide a boost to our economy,” said Bharat Patel, chairman and director, Yudiz Solutions, a game development firm.

Experts lauded the task force for highlighting the need for a national regulatory framework. On 23 December, the government said that the gaming sector will be regulated by electronics and information technology ministry, while e-sports (including competitive gaming events) will fall under the purview of the sports ministry.

“We are happy to note that the report acknowledges the key challenges faced by the industry currently i.e uncertainty on taxation and lack of a national level regulatory framework,” said Amrit Mathur, Advisor to Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS), while praising the appointment of nodal ministries.

“The appointment of MeitY as the central regulatory authority will provide clarity & certainty to investors, industry, and consumers,” he said.

MeitY will soon publish rules for online gaming intermediaries and start public consultation on the same, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for IT and Electronics, said in a Twitter post on December 27.