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Business Standard
25-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
'Baseline central norms for gaming will enable uniformity in compliance'
Creating a uniform set of rules for gaming will help domestic players and weed out unscrupulous offshore operators, says Sumanta Dey, VP at Head Digital Works which runs A23 Rummy and A23 Poker Ajinkya Kawale Mumbai Listen to This Article Baseline norms from a centralised body to regulate India's growing gaming sector would bring uniformity in compliance and help curb the presence of unregulated offshore entities, argues a senior policy executive from gaming firm Head Digital Works. 'It is crucial to establish a baseline level playing field for regulations. It will enable uniformity across regulations across the sector, while also enabling scope for some modifications at an individual state level,' said Sumanta Dey, vice president (corporate affairs and public policy) at Head Digital Works. These baseline norms could establish core operating guidelines while allowing states to build on them based
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Business Standard
05-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
No difference between skill and chance in GST levy, Centre tells SC
The Centre on Monday told the Supreme Court that it makes no distinction between online games of skill or chance when it comes to taxation under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law. The court was hearing pleas filed by online gaming companies challenging the 28 per cent GST on all forms of online real-money gaming. The Centre argued that any form of betting on an outcome falls under gambling, regardless of the nature of the underlying game. The classification of a game—whether it is skill-based or chance-based—is irrelevant for determining tax liability, the central government told the apex court. Even states such as Nagaland, which offer legal protections to games of skill, treat betting on the outcome of such games as gambling, the Centre submitted. Drawing a parallel with international fantasy football bets—where people wager on how many goals a particular football player will score but have no control over the outcome—the Centre stated that such activities entice players with potential rewards, which could foster addictive behaviour. The case is likely to be heard again on Tuesday. In an earlier hearing, the court had directed the Centre and the GST department to file their responses to the pleas by online gaming companies. The bench had then issued notices in petitions filed by companies such as Head Digital Works, Games24x7, and Dream11, challenging the government's decision to retrospectively impose the 28 per cent GST on the full value of online bets placed, instead of on the gross gaming revenue. The GST department has also sought to transfer all related cases from various high courts to the Supreme Court. Traditionally, the online gaming industry had been paying GST at 18 per cent, treating its activity as a service. This interpretation was disputed by the GST authorities, who chose to characterise the activity as betting and gambling, thereby subject to 28 per cent GST.
