SUMMARY
The esports game disappeared from the two app marketplaces on July 28 following a government order to the two tech companies
On receipt of the order, we have notified the affected developer and have blocked access to the app that remained available on the Play Store in India: Google spokesperson
We are clarifying how BGMI was removed from Google Play store and the App store and will let you know once we get specific information: Krafton
Popular battle royale game Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) has reportedly been taken down from Google Play Store and Apple Store in India.
The esports game disappeared from the two app marketplaces on Thursday (July 28) following a government order to the two tech companies.
“On receipt of the order, following (the) established process, we have notified the affected developer and have blocked access to the app that remained available on the Play Store in India,” a Google spokesperson told Moneycontrol.
It was not immediately clear as to why the order was issued or what prompted the move.
South Korean gaming studio Krafton, which owns the popular title, also appeared clueless about the order. “We are clarifying how BGMI was removed from Google Play store and the App store and will let you know once we get specific information,” a Krafton spokesperson was quoted as saying.
BGMI is one of the most popular games in Karfton’s portfolio, built exclusively for India. It is the Indian version of popular game PUBG Mobile,.
The apparent takedown is reminiscent of a similar ban that PUBG India faced in the country in September 2020. The government had then banned 117 mobile apps including PUBG over apprehensions of either having originated in China or having some Chinese connection.
Before 2020, the South Korean game developer held the intellectual property rights to the game, while Tencent Games was PUBG Mobile’s distribution partner in India.
In the aftermath of the ban, Krafton revoked its ties with Tencent in India and made its India debut in the form of Battlegrounds Mobile India. The game has since then raked up more than 100 Mn registered users in the country.
The game has also been under scrutiny ever since the case of a teen boy murdering his mother for not allowing him to play games made headlines last month. The issue also echoed in the Parliament this month after an MP questioned the ban on PUBG and its involvement in the matricide.
