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The Karnataka High Court quashed an amendment to the Karnataka Police Act, 1963. According to this amendment, operating and participating in fantasy games were non-bailable offenses. Justice Krishna S. Dixit discussed this Fantasy Sports News and shared her views on it. She said that this will allow the Karnataka state government to adopt a new law so that they can press restrictions on gambling. This lets online fantasy gaming completely out of the confine.
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The state government notified the Karnataka Police (Amendment) Act on 5 October 2021 that linked all forms of gaming with virtual or real-world stakes. It also includes online and 'skill' games. Skill games are generally grouped by law as these require human cognizance. Also, they have no resemblance with those games that are completely based on luck.
The huge industry of Indian fantasy sports is growing exponentially. The Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) and KPMG made a report 'The Business of Fantasy Sports' in 2020. According to it, the net revenue of fantasy sports operators in India was $340 million in March 2020. According to the report and fantasy sports news, the fantasy sports' net revenue will grow to $3.7 billion by 2024. The expected revenue is more than 10 times in just 4 years.
What everyone said on the change:
Jay Satya, a technology and gaming lawyer shared her thoughts on it. "Games of skill and of chance are different, which has also been ruled previously by the Supreme Court Once something is categorized as a game of skill, it does not fall under the ambit of gambling, and skill games enjoy constitutional protection of trade and commerce under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution."
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Sameer Barde, chief executive of the E-Gaming Federation, an industry body said, "What happened as a result of this ban is the rise of a lot of fly-by-night operators in the field of gambling. The ability of a state to enforce a ban on such a field is next to zero, as pretty much everyone knows how to circumvent such restrictions by using VPNs. What happened is that legitimate operators stopped plying in the state, leading to the overnight operators thriving. Essentially, such bans are counterproductive."
Roland Landers, chief executive of the All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) said, "This is a step in the right direction to grow the gaming industry in the state, and will help unlock the economic potential this sector has. We look forward to working with the government and stakeholders to develop a clear regulatory framework – that will enable legitimate gaming companies to operate in the state with safeguards while eradicating illegal gambling apps from the state."