Krafton’s 'Battlegrounds' Banned Again in Indian Market... "Investigating the Circumstances"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Krafton’s Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), which was being serviced in India, has been blocked on local app markets.

According to major foreign media on the 29th, Google and Apple recently removed BGMI from 'Google Play' and 'Apple App Store' respectively, following instructions from the Indian government. The specific reason why the Indian government blocked access to BGMI has not been disclosed yet.

Launched last year, BGMI surpassed 100 million cumulative users within a year and successfully established itself in the Indian market by ranking first in sales on local app markets.

Some speculate that this decision by the Indian government is related to Tencent, the major shareholder of Krafton. Previously, in October 2020, the Indian government blocked 118 Chinese apps, including Battlegrounds Mobile, amid escalating border disputes between India and China. At that time, Tencent of China was responsible for the global service of Battlegrounds Mobile.

Krafton established a local corporation in India and attempted self-distribution to resume service, eventually re-releasing the game under the name BGMI in July last year.

Additionally, Krafton has invested over 100 billion KRW in Indian companies such as Indian e-sports company Nodwin Gaming, game streaming platform Loco, and web novel platform Pratilipi, making significant efforts to enter the Indian market.

A Krafton official stated, "We are currently confirming the exact situation regarding the suspension of downloads on the two major app stores in the Indian region with relevant departments and companies."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.