Indian state, Meghalaya, to regulate online gaming; licenses mandatory

To regulate online gaming and boost revenue for the state, the Meghalaya cabinet has approved a proposal to regulate online gaming by framing an ordinance for the purpose. It is called the "Meghalaya regulation of gaming ordinance, 2021."

Talking to the media after the meeting, Cabinet Minister of Home James Sangma said, "we are approving this ordinance to increase revenue collection by improving the existing taxation acts and embracing the use of technologies, and tapping new resources to generate revenue."

Online gaming has been booming in India. Meghalaya is no exception. Gaming generates revenue through stake money and advertisement. The local governments have a tremendous interest in regulating this industry.

Meghalaya to regulate online gaming

To regulate gaming within #Meghalaya and to bring revenue to the State Government, Cabinet today approved the 𝐌𝐞𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐚 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏. @nsitharaman @FinMinIndia pic.twitter.com/ortFfaC97p

— Conrad Sangma (@SangmaConrad) January 14, 2021

Online and mobile gaming has become one of the leisure indulgences for Indians with an increased use of technology and a surge of smartphone sales.

The growing youth population and a change in consumer spending behavior have driven online gaming in India. According to Statista, India recorded about 365 million online gamers in the year 2020. This number is estimated to cross 510 million by the year 2022. Overall, India is ranked the highest in terms of online game downloads on app stores. The country's gaming population grew at a rate of 165 percent between 2016 to 2018.