Indian Federation of Sports Gaming Launches GAMEPLAN2018
by Shrutee K/DNS
Mumbai, February 22, 2018: The Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG),
India’s first industry body formed for protecting consumer interests through
the self-regulation of the Sports Gaming industry, launched its flagship event ‘GamePlan’. The event
brought together various stakeholders from the online Sports Gaming fraternity
in India. Luminaries who attended the annual conference discussed and
deliberated upon various aspects of the online Sports Gaming industry,
primarily focusing on the growth potential of Fantasy Sports in India.
It was a momentous
occasion for the entire industry as the first-ever report on ‘The Laws Relating to Fantasy Sports Games
in India’ was launched by Harsh Jain, Chairman of IFSG and CEO &
Co-founder of Dream11, Nandan Kamath, Principal Lawyer at LawNK &
Researcher at Sports Law & Policy Centre (SLPC) and Ranjan Chatterjee,
Former Chief Secretary of Meghalaya & Former Member of NGT. This report
delves into the skill element of Fantasy Sports games, need for self-regulation
by online Sports Gaming companies, the use of third-party intellectual property
in Fantasy Sports games and the recent developments in the Supreme Court of
India relating to the determination of Dream11’s Fantasy Sports format as a
game of predominant skill.
GamePlan 2018 had
three panel discussions that addressed key aspects of Fantasy Sports, including
its investment potential in India, the legal landscape, and why some of the
biggest sports leagues rely on Fantasy Sports as a tool for fan engagement. The
discussions featured eminent panellists - Aarti Dabas (ICC), Arun Prabhu (Cyril
Amarchand Mangaldas), Ganesh Prasad (Khaitan & Co), Gowree Gokhale (Nishith
Desai Associates), Jamie Stewart (CPL), Nandan Kamath (LawNK), Renuka Ramnath
(Multiples Equity), Srinivvasan Gopalkrishnan (ISL), Sumit Sinha (Multiples
Equity), Sundar Raman (RIL Sports), Vani Kola (Kalaari Capital) and Yannick
Colaco (NBA).
Commenting on
GamePlan 2018, Harsh Jain, Chairman of
IFSG & Co-Founder, CEO of Dream11 said, “We are delighted to host the
inaugural edition of GamePlan, India’s Annual Sports Gaming Conference aimed at
bringing together eminent leaders to help shape the industry on a collaborative
platform. These are exciting times with an increasing number of sports leagues,
Fantasy Sports operators and investors aligning to offer Indian sports fans an
immersive & engaging sports experience.” On the launch of the legal report, Nandan Kamath, Principal Lawyer - LawNK & Researcher - SLPC said,
“The recent developments in the courts are an encouraging sign for the Fantasy
Sports ecosystem in India as it shows the willingness of courts to carefully
and favourably evaluate game formats on criteria of predominance of skill. The
SLPC report is a collaborative effort by leading law practitioners which aims
to document the state of the law relating to online Fantasy Sports gaming and
aims to lend clarity to the industry. We hope this empowers the entrepreneurial
spirit and benefits and protects the interests of the wide variety of
stakeholders involved with Fantasy Sports games, including operators, fans,
players and governing bodies.”
The Fantasy Sports
ecosystem has been growing exponentially in India over the last few years. From
20 lakh users in 2016, the base has grown to over 2 crore Fantasy Sports users
in 2018, with estimated projections of over 10 crore Indian sports fans playing
Fantasy Sports by 2020. India now has 56 Fantasy Sports operators, with 2017
alone seeing 30 new entities entering this exciting space. Popular sporting
tournaments such as the IPL, NBA, ISL, PKL and others are increasingly relying
on fantasy sports as their primary tool for fan engagement.
IFSG aims to work
closely with key stakeholders to create a conducive environment and ensure the
growth of Sports Gaming in India by being the unified voice of the industry. To download the SLPC
report on “The Laws Relating to Fantasy Sports Games in India”, visit www.ifsg.in
About
IFSG: Formed in 2017,
Indian Federation Of Sports Gaming (IFSG) is India's first and only Sports
Gaming self-regulatory industry body formed to protect consumer interest,
create standardised best practices for the operators and liaison with key
Government stakeholders.
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