Following new laws over data privacy, the Indian government banned Battlegrounds Mobile India earlier this week. BGMI is the 'Indian version of Player Unknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) that was also blocked a year ago because of the same data concerns.
Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), a rebranded version of the PUBG Mobile app from Korean game publisher Krafton, was created as a substitute by players in India in response to the government bans. Under the PUBG alternative, tournaments might still take place.
Krafton Confirms Delisting BGMI on App Stores
Google has once more taken down the battle royale game two years later. According to TechCrunch, a Krafton representative had previously confirmed the app's removal from both the Android and iOS app stores and had recognized the delisting.
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As of writing, the mobile FPS shooting game by Korean game publisher Krafton has been removed from all mobile app stores, and players also report that in-game purchasing has already been blocked.
Even though the game is already banned in India, News18 reports that many players are still able to access the game, but the Indian gaming news platform believes that it will not be the case in the next coming days. Players who could access the game after the ban reported that error messages had already been popping up. Some reports suggested that servers have been officially taken down.
Millions of Gamers Left in the Dark After BGMI Total Ban
This move by the Indian government is motivated by new provisions of Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, which mandates that transactions carried out by means of "electronic commerce" must be provided with legal recognition.
According to The Hindu, the government has the authority to impose access restrictions on any content under Section 69A of the IT Act if doing so will promote public order, state security, foreign relations, or the sovereignty and integrity of the nation.
Many Indian BGMI gamers have already shared their frustrations online about the harsh moves by the government. It can be estimated that the Indian gaming industry will take a huge blow after these developments as the Indian version of the hit battle royale game has more than 100 million users.
In its short existence as a mobile game app, BGMI has built one of the biggest gaming communities in the world. After the PUBG ban, BGMI has helped host several regional tournaments that featured budding local gamers and developed pro teams to represent India in international PUBG bouts.
This event also affected pro teams who were forced to devise solutions to the impending PUBG blackout in India. Recently, teams Stalwart Esports and GodLike gaming have joined forces to represent India and South Asia in the coming big competitions later this year.
Stay updated here as developments come by the minute.
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