The union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) on Wednesday notified rules for regulating the digital gaming space under the Promotion and Regulation of Online Games (PROG) Act 2025, with the new norms coming into effect from May 1.
The newly notified rules allow for the formation of a Digital Gaming Authority. MEITY also said that there will be no mandatory registration for online games that do not involve real money.
According to the notification, crimes related to the law will be investigated by any of the following officials:
1. A A police officer in charge of a cyber cell in one of the states of the federation
2. Any nodal cyber cell officer of the State Government or Union Territory Administration, including officials at the police station, district or commissionerate level.
Hindustan Times reported last March that the Center was ready to notify final rules under the PROG Act 2025, relaxing key provisions to make the framework more industry-friendly. The draft rules were published on October 2 last year and were later amended following public and stakeholder feedback.
The three categories of online games
The framework continues to classify games into three categories – online social games, e-sports and online money games, IT Ministry officials said.
“In social games, revenue can come through subscriptions or similar models, but there can be no payments to users. In e-sports, there can be inflows and outflows in the form of pre-announced prizes, but they must first be recognized as sporting events. The third category is financial games, where users participate in collecting funds and winnings. This is prohibited,” an official explained in March.
Another official added that even e-sports games could fall under the financial gaming category depending on how they are regulated, with the authority being tasked with making this decision and taking action where necessary.
Games organizer
The rules will provide for the establishment of an Online Gaming Authority of India, with powers similar to a civil court to conduct investigations and summon individuals. According to an official, the entire regulatory process is expected to be digital.
According to the notification, Additional Secretary MEITY will chair the Gaming Authority, while Joint Secretaries from Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, and Department of Legal Affairs will serve as ex-officio members.
“There are no major changes in the authority’s powers,” one official said in March. “It will continue to carry out quasi-judicial functions.”
The Authority will play a central role in determining the nature of the games and enforcing the law.
“If a platform wants clarification on whether a game qualifies as an online money game, the authority will make that decision. It will also respond to complaints from users and intervene when violations are detected,” another official said.
What is PROG Law 2025?
The PROG Act, which aims to ban pay-to-play models, was passed in Parliament on August 21, 2025, and received presidential assent on August 22.
The law prohibits all online financial gaming services and imposes penalties of up to 3 years’ imprisonment and fines of up to $Rs 1 crore to facilitators. Advertising on such platforms carries penalties of up to two years imprisonment and fines of up to $50 lakh.
