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Google, Apple and Samsung app stores to come under the ambit of Online Gaming Act
Interestingly, not all online social games will require mandatory registration. Certain games can be offered without registration, though detailed guidelines will be issued to ensure these games remain safe and age-appropriate.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) will oversee matters related to the promotion of online social games, while the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports will handle the recognition and promotion of e-sports.
The new draft rules released by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) explicitly bring major app stores for mobile and computers, including Google Play Store, Apple App Store, Samsung App Store, under the ambit of regulation, alongside other online gaming providers for computers such as Steam, Epic. This marks a significant step toward ensuring accountability, user safety, and standardised practices not only for game developers but also for service providers.
Under the draft rules, An “online game service provider” is defined as any person who, alone or jointly with others, offers, operates, organises, manages, or makes available one or more online games. The term “applicant” refers to any online game service provider, or a person authorised by them, who seeks registration of an e-sport or online social game under the proposed Act.
This also brings both mobile, PC and other gaming engines such as Unreal Engine, Godot, popular Android emulators like NoxPlayer, LDPlayer, MEmu Play, and Mumu Player among others.
Interestingly, not all online social games will require mandatory registration. Certain games can be offered without registration, though detailed guidelines will be issued to ensure these games remain safe and age-appropriate. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) will oversee matters related to the promotion of online social games, while the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports will handle the recognition and promotion of e-sports. Both ministries are empowered to issue codes of practice and guidelines to ensure gaming content is educational, skill-building, or suitable for recreational purposes.
The registration process for e-sports and online social games will be carried out by a newly proposed Online Gaming Authority of India. However, industry experts have expressed concerns over the practicality of this approach.
Jay Sayta, a technology and gaming lawyer, commented, “The draft rules envisage the creation of an Online Gaming Authority of India, which will essentially comprise bureaucrats without sectoral experience, tasked with regulating and registering online social games and e-sports.”
Sayta further pointed out that since registration of online social games is not mandatory, it remains unclear why the framework includes provisions for registration at all. “It will be practically impossible to examine and register the millions of existing online games and the thousands of new games being developed daily,” he said. He warned that the new Act and proposed rules could introduce unnecessary bureaucracy, potentially stifling innovation and leaving the industry vulnerable to delays and uncertainties imposed by government officials.
MeitY has invited public comments on the draft Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2025, with feedback to be submitted by 31st October 2025. The ministry’s move signals a push to regulate the sector more strictly while trying to balance innovation, safety, and accountability. For companies like Google, Apple, and Samsung, this would mean stricter oversight of the apps and games offered through their platforms in India.
The new Online Gaming Authority of India (OGAI) has been vested with sweeping powers, including those of a civil court, to regulate India’s fast-growing online gaming industry. The framework, which comes under the recently announced draft rules, empowers the Authority to act as a quasi-judicial body, ensuring that online games operate within the boundaries of law and consumer protection.
This is for the first time that an Authority dedicated for online gaming sector will function with the powers traditionally available to a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. This means it can summon individuals and enforce their attendance for hearings, examine persons on oath, receive evidence on affidavit, demand the discovery and production of documents, inspect books of accounts, registers and other records maintained by gaming platforms, and issue commissions for the examination of witnesses or documents.
As the government moves to formalise the governance of online gaming, both developers and global tech giants will need to navigate these new rules carefully, ensuring compliance while continuing to innovate in one of India’s fastest-growing digital industries.
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