After WinZO ED Arrests, India Game Developers Warn Media: Stop Calling Real-Money Apps The 'Gaming Industry'
After the ED arrested WinZO’s founders, IGPDA urged the media to stop calling real-money apps the gaming industry, warning that mislabeling harms India’s creative game development ecosystem.
Winzo ED Arrests: The video-game industry is drawing a firm boundary line as real-money gaming platforms face legal heat. A statement issued by the Indian Game Publishers and Developers Association (IGPDA) has urged media organisations to avoid branding real-money platforms as part of the mainstream gaming sector. The timing is significant, coming just as WinZO’s founders were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on alleged money laundering charges.
The association said the repeated conflation of the two sectors has led to confusion and reputational harm for game development studios and creators working within India’s creative technology ecosystem.
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Industry Body Pushes for Accurate Media Terminology
The IGPDA statement opened with a clear request: "In light of recent regulatory action involving various real-money gaming (RMG) operators, the Indian Game Publishers & Developers Association (IGPDA) urges the media to refrain from referring to these entities as ‘gaming companies.’"
The group said the government has already differentiated between the two categories. Real-money gaming companies operate within a financial and wagering structure, while video games sit within entertainment, arts, esports, and tech innovation.
The association added that frequent mislabeling impacts professionals building the country’s intellectual property and esports infrastructure. It said, “Misclassification in headlines and reports harms the video gaming industry — the developers, studios, designers, engineers, esports professionals, and creators building original Indian IP and contributing to the nation’s digital creative economy.”
Calling for precision in news reporting, the statement read, “We request journalists, editors, and commentators to use accurate terminology such as ‘RMG operators’ rather than ‘gaming companies.’”
It concluded by saying, “IGPDA remains committed to working with government, media, and industry partners to ensure India’s creative gaming ecosystem is correctly represented.”
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WinZO Founders Taken Into Custody, Assets Frozen
The clarification came shortly after ED arrested WinZO co-founders Saumya Singh Rathore and Paavan Nanda. The agency alleges the company was involved in laundering funds linked to illegal gaming activities. Searches were conducted across Bengaluru, Delhi and Gurugram, and assets valued at more than Rs 523 crore were frozen.
A source close to the matter confirmed the legal developments, stating, “Saumya and Paavan, directors of Winzo Games Pvt Ltd, were arrested yesterday, and they were produced before the home office of the Hon’ble judge. The court has given them ED custody and directed the agency to produce them at 11:30 am today, for detailed arguments, on the remand application filed by the department.”
According to ED, the seized wealth includes bank deposits, bonds and mutual funds. The agency noted, “WinZO Games Pvt. Ltd. is into the business of online real money gaming services through its app – WinZO. During the search, proceeds of crime (POC) possessed by WinZO Games Pvt. Ltd., worth around Rs 505 crore, were frozen in the form of bank balances, bonds, FDRs, and mutual funds under section 17 (1A) of the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.”
Allegations Extend to Global Operations and Player Fraud Claims
Multiple FIRs allege the misuse of user KYC, blocking of customer balances and misuse of financial information. An ED spokesperson said, “It is also alleged in the FIRs that the complainants’ KYC was misused by WinZO and others, and the complainants have suffered substantial loss due to fraudulent activities and cheating by WinZO and others.”
Investigators also say the platform continued hosting banned real-money services in India, while using the same infrastructure to target players abroad. The spokesperson added, “Probe conducted by ED has revealed that WinZO company is operating real money games (RMGs) in foreign countries such as Brazil, USA and Germany, etc, from India (on the same platform used by the Indian entity). Even after the ban of RMGs by the Centre, an amount of Rs 43 crore was still held by the company without refunding to the gamers/customers.”
The agency further alleged that players were unknowingly matched against automated software rather than real competitors. The ED stated the platform “was engaged in criminal activities and unscrupulous practices; customers were made to play with algorithms/software without being made aware that they were playing with algorithms/software, not with humans, in real money games.”
WinZO Says It Is Cooperating
WinZO has said it complies with the law and is cooperating with authorities as the inquiry expands. The arrested founders are expected to return to court as investigators push for continued custody.
As the legal and regulatory scrutiny deepens, the IGPDA’s message signals that India’s creative gaming industry wants its identity clearly separated from betting-led platforms now under investigation.
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