The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) is holding a ‘consultative’ meeting on November 18 to discuss television (TV) advertisements around online gaming, according to a meeting notice reviewed by MediaNama. The ministry has confirmed that the meeting is taking place, and that it is regarding online gaming ads on TV, but refused to divulge any further details. As per the meeting notice, the ministry’s rationale for the meeting is that TV channels are broadcasting ads for online gaming platforms such as that of Mobile Premier League (MPL) pool winner, Naam11.com, and Dear Lottery, which possibly goes against existing advertising and consumer protection regulations. The following people have been invited to attend the video meeting, which is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon: Manisha Kapoor, Secretary General, Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) Rajat Sharma, President, News Broadcasters Association (NBA) K. Madhavan, President, Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) Ministry of Consumer Affairs All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) Federation of India Fantasy Sports (FIFS) The Online Rummy Federation (TORF) The ministry has also said that the individuals mentioned can nominate a representative to attend the meeting. AIGF, FIFS, and TORF have refused to comment. We have reached out to ASCI, IBF, and NBA for details and will update this once they respond The AIGF is an industry body for online skill gaming in India, its members include the Mobile Premier League, Adda52.com, Paytm First Games, and 9Stacks. The FIFS calls itself a self-regulatory body for fantasy sports and counts Dream11, My11Circle, and MyTeam11 as members.…
