Thread by @_TheTathya

The Online Gaming Bill, 2025 — Explained! 🔥

India’s online gaming industry was booming.

Apps like Dream11, MPL, RummyCircle, and PokerBaazi had millions of users. Startups were valued at billions. Investors poured in money.

But beneath the surface, a crisis was growing… 🧵

Addiction stories became headlines.

Students lost fees, workers lost salaries, families lost savings.

Some even took extreme steps... suicides linked to real-money gaming rose alarmingly.

🚨 And then came something scarier: terror funding & money laundering via gaming apps.

👉 Until now, India had no uniform law for online gaming.

India only had the Public Gambling Act of 1867 and scattered state laws.

Some states said rummy = skill, others banned it.

The Supreme Court kept getting petitions. But the industry thrived in this grey zone.

Finally, the government acted.

The Promotion & Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (popularly called the Online Gaming Bill) was passed in Parliament and signed into law.

Its core idea is to...

👉 Ban harmful money games
👉 Promote safe, cultural, and skill-based gaming (like e-sports & educational games)

The message is clear... Gaming is welcome, gambling is not.

So what exactly does the law do?

➡️ Total Ban on Real-Money Games – whether it’s poker, rummy, fantasy cricket, or any app where money is staked.

➡️ No loopholes – doesn’t matter if you call it “skill” or “chance.”

➡️ Ban on financial support – banks, UPI, wallets can’t process these payments anymore.

👉 But the Bill isn’t against gaming itself.

In fact, it encourages e-sports... treating it like a real sport.

Think competitive video gaming, coding contests, or digital skill-based challenges. These will now get official recognition and promotion.

To regulate this new ecosystem, a National Online Gaming Commission (NOGC) will be set up.

It will:

— Classify games (allowed vs banned)
— Issue licenses
— Handle complaints
— Block illegal apps/websites

👉 Finally, one central authority instead of confusing state-level rules.

And what if someone breaks the law?

The penalties are strict:

👉 Run a money-gaming app → Jail up to 3 years + ₹1 crore fine

👉 Advertise banned games → Jail up to 2 years + ₹50 lakh fine

👉 Repeat offenders → Up to 5 years + ₹2 crore fine

👉 Even foreign apps will be blocked if they target Indian users.

👉 This law is already shaking up the industry:

— Dream11 backed out as Team India’s title sponsor.

— Platforms like MPL, Zupee, PokerBaazi can’t accept new deposits.

— Investors fear losses worth billions of dollars.

The “real-money gaming boom” is over.

But for players, there’s some relief...

Your existing wallet balances are safe and withdrawable.

👉 For entrepreneurs, new opportunities open up in e-sports, educational, and cultural gaming.

👉 For society, the Bill promises safety: less addiction, less fraud, and more positive use of gaming.

But the real question is:

👉 Will this law actually protect people, or push money games underground?

Share your thoughts below 👇

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