Latest news with #HaryanaPreventionofPublicGamblingAct
Time of India
03-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Haryana's new gambling law: An analysis of why there's a need for a calibrated policy on fantasy sports faming
Nilanjan Banik is a professor at Bennett University's School of Business. His work focuses on the application of time series econometrics in issues relating to international trade, market structure and development economics. He is also interested in the "rules" part of WTO; especially examining non-tariff barriers aspects of GATT/WTO agreements. He has project experience with Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia; Laffer Associates, USA; KPMG, India; Ministry of Commerce, Government of India; Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), New Delhi; Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), New Delhi; Center for Economic Policy Research, UK; Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo; Asian Development Bank, Manila; South Asia Network of Economic Research Institutes (SANEI); UNESCAP-ARTNeT, Thailand, Australia India Institute, University of Melbourne; and World Trade Organization, Geneva. LESS ... MORE The Haryana Prevention of Public Gambling Act (HPPGA), 2025 marks a pivotal shift in the state's legal approach to betting and gaming. In step with the growing momentum around regulating digital activities, the Act aims to criminalise gambling and betting formats where chance predominates. Crucially, it also carves out an exemption for games of skill, a legal distinction that has been reinforced through multiple rulings by High Courts and the Supreme Court of India. This exemption is more than a legal footnote, it is a linchpin for India's fast-evolving digital economy, particularly for sectors like fantasy sports and its innovative formats. By recognising skill-based games as distinct from gambling, the Act acknowledges the growing complexity of online gaming and the need to regulate it with nuance. However, the law stops short of providing detailed guidance on how this distinction will be operationalised especially for new-age innovative gaming formats that blend analytics, real-world sporting data, and gamification. Fantasy sports platforms operate on the foundational legal recognition that they are games of skill, not chance. While gambling results in a uniform distribution, with an equal probability of winning or losing, skill-based activities typically have a higher probability of winning, leading to a left-skewed distribution. In simple terms, the mathematical way to distinguish skill-based activities from gambling is that a skilled player is more likely to achieve a higher payoff than a gambler. The reason gambling is banned in many countries, including India, is due to its association with issues such as addiction, financial losses, fraud, and the loss of life and livelihood. By similar logic, online gaming and trading are allowed in many countries because they facilitate price discovery based on skills of market participants. Markets are created with opportunities to do business. This status has been affirmed through repeated judicial scrutiny, with the Supreme Court categorically distinguishing fantasy sports from gambling. The legality of such platforms has become a cornerstone of their success, unlocking major domestic and global investments and contributing to a burgeoning digital ecosystem. Yet, despite this judicial clarity, Haryana's new law introduces fresh uncertainty. The Act, while theoretically aligned with national jurisprudence, does not explicitly clarify whether fantasy sports fall under its exemption for skill-based games. In a state like Haryana, home to Gurugram's thriving tech and gaming startups, this omission has created confusion and concern within the industry. Operators are left reading between the lines of legal language, unsure whether their business models are protected or exposed under the new regime. The issue is compounded by the lack of a formal co-regulatory or licensing mechanism for fantasy sports and its innovative formats. Haryana's new law appears isolated from broader digital policy developments be it compliant, responsible gaming and taxes. This gap has exposed platforms, investors, and gig workers to policy volatility, despite their activities aligning with judicial norms. The stakes of this ambiguity are far from theoretical. Similar regulatory grey zones in states like Tamil Nadu triggered temporary bans, litigation, and operational paralysis. Even though courts ultimately overturned these restrictions, the damage had already been done where several companies halted regional operations, paused hiring, and rerouted capital expenditure to more policy-stable environments. Haryana now risks a similar fallout. Gurugram has emerged as a key node in India's digital economy, hosting not only platform operators but also a vast ecosystem of professionals like engineers, designers, analysts, marketing experts, legal advisors, content creators, and customer support personnel. Unclear regulation threatens not just corporate strategy but the livelihoods of thousands of skilled and gig workers embedded in this sector. The ripple effects extend to investor sentiment. Early-stage and global investors interpret such legal gaps as red flags. A single restrictive notification, or even delayed clarification, could redirect millions in funding and push innovation pipelines to cities or countries with more predictable policy environments, be it Bengaluru, Noida, Dubai, or Singapore. The absence of regulatory foresight can also undermine India's larger digital ambition. The central government has set a target of building a $1 trillion digital economy by 2027. Reaching that milestone will require policy coherence not only at the Centre but also across states. Haryana's indecision on fantasy sports regulation, if left unaddressed, may erode its ability to contribute meaningfully to this national goal. Fantasy sports and its innovative formats are not just another entertainment vertical, they represent the convergence of mobile-first consumer behaviour, real-time data analytics, competitive gamification, and digital finance. With over 220 million users in India, the format has grown from a casual pastime to a mainstream digital economy driver by generating significant amount of taxes and thousands of jobs. Moreover, fantasy sports and its innovative formats have proven resilient and compliant. Operators already function under a de facto code of self-regulation, deploying KYC norms, age verification, deposit caps, and responsible gaming features. Courts have validated this structure as evidence of the industry's good faith. The sector's economic contributions are equally significant. Fantasy platforms and its innovative formats collectively contribute hundreds of crores in taxes, and their tech-centric operations have catalysed growth in adjacent sectors like analytics, payments, cybersecurity, and content production. Notably, these are high-skilling, future-proof domains where India has global competitive potential. What's more, the industry also supports a growing gig economy. Freelancers, streamers, influencers, and analysts, many of them young Indians, derive a substantial part of their livelihood from fantasy-related content and engagement. Any policy disruption affects them disproportionately, especially those lacking formal contracts or long-term employment protections. Haryana's challenge, and opportunity, lies in transforming ambiguity into leadership. The state can begin by issuing an official notification explicitly recognising major fantasy sports and its innovative formats as games of skill, in line with constitutional and judicial precedents. This would eliminate legal doubt while reinforcing investor confidence. The next step is to build a co-regulatory framework. Such a model, already recommended by national think tanks and adopted in nascent form by other Indian states, would blend public oversight with private sector expertise. It would institutionalise safeguards, enable consumer protection, and provide operators with clear compliance pathways. Most importantly, it would signal to the world that Haryana is serious about supporting responsible digital innovation. Consultations with stakeholders like industry leaders, legal experts, consumer groups, and technologists must be central to this process. Regulation need not be a barrier to innovation. On the contrary, smart policy design can become a competitive advantage, attracting entrepreneurs, capital, and talent to the state. Ultimately, the regulatory debate around fantasy sports and its innovative formats in Haryana is about more than just compliance, it is a litmus test for how India's states will govern the industries of the future. With the digital economy becoming a key engine of national growth, states must choose whether to lead, follow, or fall behind. Fantasy sports may be a game of skill, but crafting progressive, innovation-friendly regulation is the real test of strategy. Haryana has the board, the pieces, and the opportunity. Now it must make the right move. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
Time of India
02-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Haryana's new gambling law: An analysis of why there's a need for a calibrated policy on Fantasy Sports Gaming
Nilanjan Banik is a professor at Bennett University's School of Business. His work focuses on the application of time series econometrics in issues relating to international trade, market structure and development economics. He is also interested in the "rules" part of WTO; especially examining non-tariff barriers aspects of GATT/WTO agreements. He has project experience with Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia; Laffer Associates, USA; KPMG, India; Ministry of Commerce, Government of India; Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), New Delhi; Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), New Delhi; Center for Economic Policy Research, UK; Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo; Asian Development Bank, Manila; South Asia Network of Economic Research Institutes (SANEI); UNESCAP-ARTNeT, Thailand, Australia India Institute, University of Melbourne; and World Trade Organization, Geneva. LESS ... MORE The Haryana Prevention of Public Gambling Act (HPPGA), 2025 marks a pivotal shift in the state's legal approach to betting and gaming. In step with the growing momentum around regulating digital activities, the Act aims to criminalise gambling and betting formats where chance predominates. Crucially, it also carves out an exemption for games of skill, a legal distinction that has been reinforced through multiple rulings by High Courts and the Supreme Court of India. This exemption is more than a legal footnote, it is a linchpin for India's fast-evolving digital economy, particularly for sectors like fantasy sports and its innovative formats. By recognising skill-based games as distinct from gambling, the Act acknowledges the growing complexity of online gaming and the need to regulate it with nuance. However, the law stops short of providing detailed guidance on how this distinction will be operationalised especially for new-age innovative gaming formats that blend analytics, real-world sporting data, and gamification. Fantasy sports platforms such as Probo, Dream11, MPL, SportsBaazi, and My11Circle operate on the foundational legal recognition that they are games of skill, not chance. While gambling results in a uniform distribution, with an equal probability of winning or losing, skill-based activities typically have a higher probability of winning, leading to a left-skewed distribution. In simple terms, the mathematical way to distinguish skill-based activities from gambling is that a skilled player is more likely to achieve a higher payoff than a gambler. The reason gambling is banned in many countries, including India, is due to its association with issues such as addiction, financial losses, fraud, and the loss of life and livelihood. By similar logic, online gaming and trading are allowed in many countries because they facilitate price discovery based on skills of market participants. Markets are created with opportunities to do business. This status has been affirmed through repeated judicial scrutiny, with the Supreme Court categorically distinguishing fantasy sports from gambling. The legality of such platforms has become a cornerstone of their success, unlocking major domestic and global investments and contributing to a burgeoning digital ecosystem. Yet, despite this judicial clarity, Haryana's new law introduces fresh uncertainty. The Act, while theoretically aligned with national jurisprudence, does not explicitly clarify whether fantasy sports fall under its exemption for skill-based games. In a state like Haryana, home to Gurugram's thriving tech and gaming startups, this omission has created confusion and concern within the industry. Operators are left reading between the lines of legal language, unsure whether their business models are protected or exposed under the new regime. The issue is compounded by the lack of a formal co-regulatory or licensing mechanism for fantasy sports and its innovative formats. Haryana's new law appears isolated from broader digital policy developments be it compliant, responsible gaming and taxes. This gap has exposed platforms, investors, and gig workers to policy volatility, despite their activities aligning with judicial norms. The stakes of this ambiguity are far from theoretical. Similar regulatory grey zones in states like Tamil Nadu triggered temporary bans, litigation, and operational paralysis. Even though courts ultimately overturned these restrictions, the damage had already been done where several companies halted regional operations, paused hiring, and rerouted capital expenditure to more policy-stable environments. Haryana now risks a similar fallout. Gurugram has emerged as a key node in India's digital economy, hosting not only platform operators but also a vast ecosystem of professionals like engineers, designers, analysts, marketing experts, legal advisors, content creators, and customer support personnel. Unclear regulation threatens not just corporate strategy but the livelihoods of thousands of skilled and gig workers embedded in this sector. The ripple effects extend to investor sentiment. Early-stage and global investors interpret such legal gaps as red flags. A single restrictive notification, or even delayed clarification, could redirect millions in funding and push innovation pipelines to cities or countries with more predictable policy environments, be it Bengaluru, Noida, Dubai, or Singapore. The absence of regulatory foresight can also undermine India's larger digital ambition. The central government has set a target of building a $1 trillion digital economy by 2027. Reaching that milestone will require policy coherence not only at the Centre but also across states. Haryana's indecision on fantasy sports regulation, if left unaddressed, may erode its ability to contribute meaningfully to this national goal. Fantasy sports and its innovative formats are not just another entertainment vertical, they represent the convergence of mobile-first consumer behaviour, real-time data analytics, competitive gamification, and digital finance. With over 220 million users in India, the format has grown from a casual pastime to a mainstream digital economy driver by generating significant amount of taxes and thousands of jobs. Moreover, fantasy sports and its innovative formats have proven resilient and compliant. Operators already function under a de facto code of self-regulation, deploying KYC norms, age verification, deposit caps, and responsible gaming features. Courts have validated this structure as evidence of the industry's good faith. The sector's economic contributions are equally significant. Fantasy platforms and its innovative formats collectively contribute hundreds of crores in taxes, and their tech-centric operations have catalysed growth in adjacent sectors like analytics, payments, cybersecurity, and content production. Notably, these are high-skilling, future-proof domains where India has global competitive potential. What's more, the industry also supports a growing gig economy. Freelancers, streamers, influencers, and analysts, many of them young Indians, derive a substantial part of their livelihood from fantasy-related content and engagement. Any policy disruption affects them disproportionately, especially those lacking formal contracts or long-term employment protections. Haryana's challenge, and opportunity, lies in transforming ambiguity into leadership. The state can begin by issuing an official notification explicitly recognising major fantasy sports and its innovative formats as games of skill, in line with constitutional and judicial precedents. This would eliminate legal doubt while reinforcing investor confidence. The next step is to build a co-regulatory framework. Such a model, already recommended by national think tanks and adopted in nascent form by other Indian states, would blend public oversight with private sector expertise. It would institutionalise safeguards, enable consumer protection, and provide operators with clear compliance pathways. Most importantly, it would signal to the world that Haryana is serious about supporting responsible digital innovation. Consultations with stakeholders like industry leaders, legal experts, consumer groups, and technologists must be central to this process. Regulation need not be a barrier to innovation. On the contrary, smart policy design can become a competitive advantage, attracting entrepreneurs, capital, and talent to the state. Ultimately, the regulatory debate around fantasy sports and its innovative formats in Haryana is about more than just compliance, it is a litmus test for how India's states will govern the industries of the future. With the digital economy becoming a key engine of national growth, states must choose whether to lead, follow, or fall behind. Fantasy sports may be a game of skill, but crafting progressive, innovation-friendly regulation is the real test of strategy. Haryana has the board, the pieces, and the opportunity. Now it must make the right move. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
The Print
01-05-2025
- Business
- The Print
Fantasy Sports Innovation Stalls Under Haryana's New Gambling Law- A Threat to India's $1 Trillion Digital Dream?
While gambling results in a uniform distribution, with an equal probability of winning or losing, skill-based activities typically have a higher probability of winning, leading to a left-skewed distribution. In simple terms, the mathematical way to distinguish skill-based activities from gambling is that a skilled player is more likely to achieve a higher payoff than a gambler. The reason gambling is banned in many countries, including India, is due to its association with issues such as addiction, financial losses, fraud, and the loss of life and livelihood. By similar logic, online gaming and trading are allowed in many countries because they facilitate price discovery based on skills of market participants. Markets are created with opportunities to do business. New Delhi [India], May 1 (ANI): The Haryana Prevention of Public Gambling Act (HPPGA), 2025 has introduced a new wave of uncertainty in India's fast-evolving digital economy and its most immediate casualty may well be innovation. While the legislation rightly aims to curb illegal gambling and safeguard public interest, its silence on skill-based online formats like fantasy sports gaming and its innovative formats has sparked concern across the tech ecosystem. Startups, investors, and policy researchers alike warn that this ambiguity, particularly in a tech-forward state like Haryana, could stall innovation, force relocation of companies, and undermine India's broader digital ambition of building a $1 trillion digital economy by 2027. The Policy Gap Fantasy sports gaming and its innovative formats, now used by over 220 million Indians, have transformed from casual gaming apps into complex data-driven ecosystems. These platforms have been repeatedly recognised by Indian courts, including the Supreme Court, as games of skill distinct and categorized as a legitimate business activity protected under Article 19(1) g of the Indian Constitution. That legal clarity at the national level, however, is not reflected in Haryana's new law. The Prevention of Public Gambling Act, 2025 criminalises games of chance but exempts games of skill. Yet, it stops short of explicitly acknowledging fantasy sports gaming and its innovative formats, within the skill-based category. This legal grey area, industry leaders say, is now discouraging innovation in what is arguably one of India's most dynamic digital sectors. Innovation Under Threat At the heart of this disruption lies a fundamental misunderstanding: fantasy sports and its innovative formats today are no longer just about picking a dream Cricket team. They are evolved into a complex, predictive, and real-time engagement experience that combines sports analytics, behavioural data, and financial modelling. Formats like player stocks, where users apply predictive thinking to specific game-related or performance-based outcomes, represent the cutting edge of this evolution. Player Stocks, for instance, is a format born in India- a unique fusion of market logic, data interpretation, and sporting knowledge. It allows users to assess real-time probabilities and express views on micro-moments within a match, such as 'Will Abhishek score 50+ runs?' or 'Will Varun take a wicket in the next over?' Rather than chance, the outcomes in these formats depend on the user's skill in interpreting data, understanding context, and acting strategically. By not recognising such innovation within the safe bounds of skill-based gaming, HPPGA is inadvertently stifling a growing category of data-backed digital products that could otherwise cement India's position as a global leader in gamified fintech and real-time entertainment. Economic and Employment Fallout: This regulatory uncertainty is not just a theoretical concern, it has immediate operational consequences. Several leading fantasy and opinion trading platforms, many headquartered in Gurugram, are already exploring relocation to states like Maharashtra, Karnataka or Uttar Pradesh, which offer more progressive and clearer regulatory environments. Such a move would threaten: * Thousands of direct and indirect jobs across tech, legal, marketing, and content teams * R&D centres and innovation labs that have invested in scaling newer formats in fantasy sports gaming * Tax revenue: fantasy platforms contributed nearly 1% of India's GST collections last year * Investor confidence, particularly after the recent GST overhaul in 2023, which had already dampened sentiment It would also affect the broader digital ecosystem, from payment infrastructure and user identity systems to influencer networks and live sports content production, that depends on fantasy gaming for growth and monetisation. Precedent and National Impact: The situation in Haryana is a deja vu moment for the gaming industry. In the past, states like Tamil Nadu attempted blanket bans on fantasy sports gaming, only to face legal challenges that overturned the restrictions. But during those periods of uncertainty, the damage was already done: startups paused investments, froze hiring, and redirected resources out of the affected regions. In a digitally interconnected economy, such regulatory instability does not stay local. It sends a chilling signal across boardrooms and investor circles especially in a post-pandemic world where companies are re-evaluating the cost of doing business in unpredictable policy environments. As one policy researcher noted, 'When regulation lacks clarity or appears reactionary, businesses, especially in emerging sectors, respond by becoming cautious. Investors view such developments as risk signals.' A Case for Calibrated Policy: It is important to recognise that policy clarity need not come at the cost of oversight. On the contrary, a co-regulatory framework with government supervision, industry participation, and consumer safeguards can ensure that innovation continues responsibly. By officially recognising fantasy sports gaming and its innovative formats as games of skill, Haryana has the opportunity to: * Cement its place as a tech policy pioneer * Retain and attract high-value digital jobs * Foster a globally competitive gaming and fintech ecosystem * Contribute meaningfully to India's $1 trillion digital economy target Conclusion- Haryana's Moment of Choice: The conversation around fantasy sports gaming regulation in Haryana is not just about defining what constitutes a game of skill. It is about deciding whether India's innovation economy will be nurtured or stifled at the state level. Fantasy sports gaming and its innovative formats sit at the convergence of multiple forces like mobile-first behaviour, real-time analytics, gamification, and financial literacy. Ignoring this innovation would be a setback not just for the state, but for India's digital future. As India's youth seek out new-age digital careers, and as global investors eye Indian tech as the next frontier, states like Haryana must make bold, forward-looking choices. Supporting innovation with clarity and confidence is no longer optional, it's the strategy that will determine who leads in tomorrow's digital economy. Disclaimer: Nilanjan Banik is Professor of Economics and Finance at the School of Management at Mahindra University, Hyderabad. The views expressed in this article are his own. (ANI) This report is auto-generated from ANI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
