PUBG Mobile India timeline: Everything to know

In a way, PUBG Mobile has pioneered the battle royale genre’s growth on the mobile platform. The game has established itself and has emerged as one of the most prominent options.

It has amassed a massive player base across the world and is extremely popular amongst the Indian community.

However, the title’s journey hasn’t been smooth sailing in India. It was among the apps banned by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in September 2020. Since then, fans have been eagerly waiting for the return of PUBG Mobile in India.

There have been various developments regarding the revival of PUBG Mobile, with a specific version being announced. This article looks at the timeline of PUBG Mobile India.

Also Read: 5 best games like PUBG Mobile released after India's ban.

PUBG Mobile India timeline: Everything to know about what all has happened so far

Job Posting on LinkedIn

In October of 2020, PUBG Corporation posted a recruitment notice on LinkedIn for a Corporate Development Division Manager for the Indian region. After this, speculations regarding the return of PUBG Mobile strengthened.

Deal with Microsoft Azure

PUBG Mobile has been banned in India due to data and security reasons. Later, on 7th November, Krafton Inc announced that they would be working with Microsoft Azure. A deal with Microsoft’s cloud computing service would ensure privacy and data security.

Official Announcement

Soon after the deal with Microsoft Azure, the official announcement of PUBG Mobile India was made on the 12th of November. In the official press release, it was disclosed that three changes would be made to the title:

#1 Default clothed character

#2 Green hit effect

#3 Feature to limit the playtime

Moreover, the South Korean company also revealed their plans for an investment worth $100 million and set up an India subsidiary.

Website and Teasers

PUBG Mobile India was later released. They featured prominent Indian PUBG Mobile figures - Kronten, Dynamo, and Jonathan - and displayed a "Coming Soon" message. Users can view it below:

A new website for the title was also set up. On the ‘news’ section of the website, users could find a ‘Download’ option. However, the download option didn’t work and instead redirected the players to the official website of the global version of PUBG Mobile.

Registration of PUBG India as a company

On 21st November, PUBG India registered as a private limited company with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, having paid-up capital of ₹5 lakh and authorized capital of ₹15 lakh. The two directors of the company were also named:

Kumar Krishnan Iyer
Sean (Hyunil) Sohn

New country manager and operations team

Aneesh Aravind was appointed as the country manager of PUBG Mobile in India by Krafton Inc (game's parent company). The company also hired several members of operations teams in the country. They are:

Akash Jumde - Visual Content Designer
Piyush Agarwal - Finance Manager
Arpita Priyadarshini - Senior Community Manager
Karan Pathak - Senior Esports Manager

RTIs

Recently there have been numerous developments about the future of PUBG Mobile in India in the form of the response to the RTIs. One of the replies revealed that no permission was given for the launch of PUBG Mobile in India.

GemWire had also filed an RTI in December, which sought information regarding PUBG Mobile’s suspension in the country and the game’s current status.

The response cleared a lot of doubts surrounding the title. It disclosed that the game wasn’t banned for public access but was only instead blocked. The reply stated that the blocking only applies to specific apps. Also, there was no formal dialogue between PUBG/Krafton and the ministry.

Also Read: Major reason why PUBG Mobile was banned in India.