PUBG Mobile could be permanently banned in India

PUBG Mobile was banned in India last September and the efforts to bring it back to the Indian audience has been a constant since. But it did yield much results. And now it seems like the game is in danger of being permanently banned.

In a new move this week, Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) permanently banned 59 Chinese apps from India that include the likes of TikTok and WeChat. MEITY reasoned that, "The government is not satisfied with the response/explanation given by these companies. Hence, the ban for these 59 apps is permanent now."

These apps were part of the first wave of temporary bans from last year and MEITY had asked for an explanation on how they handle user data and collection. Being dissatisfied by the response these were banned.

This could very well be the fate of PUBG Mobile in India, and according to an IGN India report a representative from the ministry commented, "The authorities aren’t stupid, even if publishing duties have changed hands, the development of the game is still based in China,” says one source. “The entire exercise seems like putting lipstick on a pig."

The effort to have PUBG Mobile unbanned

While it seems like PUBG Mobile India is headed for a permanent ban, some are of the opinion that the situation can be salvaged. Some believe that Krafton has not been able to put an effective team together yet.

“They don’t have the right team in place just yet to talk to the government,” a source told IGN India. “Hopefully discussions begin by March-April so Indian esports teams can participate by the second half of the year in international tournaments.”

While the game is still not available in India, apparently it still has a player base in the millions. According to a TechCrunch report, analytics firm App Annie says PUBG Mobile’s monthly active users from India is still over 15 million.

Krafton Corporation that owns the PUBG branding did away with Tencent as the distributor in India and has since been trying to get the game unbanned, but an RTI filed by Medianama got the following response from MEITY.

“MEITY does not grant permission for starting of any websites / mobile Apps / service. Accordingly, MEITY has not granted permission to PUBG / PUBG mobile India.” Hence it seems like it's still a long way to unbanning the game in India, and it may even be gone permanently.

Want to know about the latest happenings in tech?

Follow TechRadar India on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!

* This article was originally published here

Comments

The market value has evaporated by 250 billion, Haidilao boss tortures human nature, where does the capital go?

Financial crocodile Soros famously said: "The history of the world economy is a series based on illusions and lies. To gain wealth, the way is to recognize the illusion, invest in it, and then quit the game before the illusion is recognized by the public." In just four months, the market value has dropped from more than 450 billion Hong Kong dollars in February this year to less than 200 billion Hong Kong dollars today. The performance of Haidilao (06862.HK) has made investors deeply appreciate Soros’ words. It also puts the underlying logic to the test. Source: wind However, the founder Zhang Yong was quite calm about the fact that the company's stock price plummeted. This can be seen in the recent Haidilao performance exchange meeting, Zhang Yong's courageous and domineering response. 01. Haidilao is not delicious? On June 25th, the topic of #张勇’sreplying Haidilao’s bad food# directly rushed to the top of Weibo’s hot search. The reason is this. Some consumers on t...

"Shraddha Walkar Case Forced Break Up": Actor Tunisha Sharma's Boyfriend

Sheezan Khan has also reportedly said that Tunisha Sharma had attempted suicide earlier as well, after they broke up. Mumbai: Sheezan Khan, main accused in TV actor Tunisha Sharma's alleged suicide, was "so disturbed by the atmosphere in the country that emerged after the gruesome murder of Shraddha Walkar" that he decided to end their relationship, he told the police, according to news agency ANI. During his first day in police custody, Sheezan Khan told Maharashtra police that he ended his relationship with Tunisha Sharma after seeing repercussions from the Shraddha Walkar case, and told her that belonging to a different community stands in their way, as did their age gap, ANI reported. Sheezan is 28, and Tunisha was 20. No suicide note was recovered at the spot by the police. Shraddha Walkar was murdered by her live-in boyfriend Aaftab Poonawala at their Delhi apartment, her body chopped into pieces and thrown at several places to hide evidence. The case triggered a...

9 Police Vans Failed To Catch Car That Dragged Woman 13 km: Sources

Sources have also told NDTV that nine Police Control Room (PCR) vans chased the car but failed to catch it. New Delhi: In the horrific death of a 20-year-old Delhi woman dragged by a car for over an hour on January 1, there are more indications that the occupants of the car knew she was caught in the axle but kept driving, crushing her in the most horrific manner. Sources have also claimed that nine Police Control Room (PCR) vans chased the car but failed to catch it. Anjali Singh, returning home from a New Year's party on her scooter with a friend, was hit by the car at around 2 am. Her leg was caught in a wheel, and she was dragged for 13 km by the car that took multiple turns to try and detach the body. Anjali's friend Nidhi, who was with her on the scooter but fled without informing anyone, has told the police that she was screaming in pain but the car driver didn't stop and "deliberately" ran her over. Sources say there were five PCR vans on the route, som...

Newsic Media | News, Publication & Technology

Search This Blog