It
is
a
joint
industry
report
by
Deloitte
and
FIFS,
and
several
engaging
discussions
and
views
on
the
economic
impact
of
online
fantasy
sports
(OFS)
in
India
and
how
it
is
fuelling
sports
growth
through
fan
engagement.
Recognising
the
outstanding
work
done
in
the
Indian
OFS
industry,
one
of
the
most
notable
keynote
speeches
was
made
by
Jayesh
Ranjan,
Principal
Secretary
of
the
Industries
&
Commerce
(I&C)
and
Information
Technology
(IT),
Government
of
Telangana.
Justice
A
N
Mittal,
Chairman,
UP
Law
Commission;
Deepak
Bagla,
MD
and
CEO
of
Invest
India;
and
Justice
(Retd.)
Arjan
Sikri
also
put
forth
their
views
on
the
impact
of
OFS
on
the
economy,
its
role
in
sports
development
and
the
current
legal
landscape.
Talking
about
the
future
of
OFS
in
the
State
of
Telangana,
Mr
Jayesh
Ranjan,
Principal
Secretary
of
the
Industries
&
Commerce
(I&C)
and
Information
Technology
(IT),
Government
of
Telangana,
said,
“We
are
aware
of
the
regulatory
issues
which
are
there
in
the
world
of
fantasy
sports.
I
know
that
there
are
court
judgments,
there
are
different
orders,
and
the
scenario
is
a
bit
muddied
and
complicated
at
this
point
in
time.
I
admit
that
there
has
been
a
push
back
in
Telangana
in
the
past
about
some
forms
of
games,
particularly
games
of
skill,
fantasy
sports,
etc.
that
have
to
be
encouraged.
I
have
taken
the
responsibility
to
introduce
a
very
simple
and
industry-friendly
piece
of
regulation
in
place
of
what
already
exists.
I
have
consulted
everyone
who
is
involved
in
this
domain,
including
representatives
from
the
FIFS.”
He
also
added,
“I
can
assure
you
that
we
will
see
a
piece
of
regulation
where
not
only
self-regulation,
but
development
will
be
encouraged.
We
need
to
remain
patient
with
what
comes
up
from
Telangana.
I
am
very
confident
that
this
will
be
some
kind
of
a
role
model
for
all
other
states
also.”
The
4th
edition
of
GamePlan
witnessed
three
highly
engaging
panel
discussions
on
‘Economic
Impact
of
Online
Fantasy
Sports
in
India’;
‘Fantasy
Sports
Fuelling
Sports
Consumption
and
Fan
Engagement’
&
‘The
Evolving
Legal
Landscape
of
Fantasy
Sports
in
India’.
The
event
saw
participation
from
eminent
dignitaries
from
the
industry
such
as
Harsh
Jain,
Co-Founder
&
CEO,
Dream11
&
Dream
Sports;
Sai
Srinivas,
Co-Founder
&
CEO,
MPL;
Bhavin
Pandya,
Co-Founder
&
CEO,
Games
24×7,
Vinit
Godara,
Co-Founder
&
CEO,
MyTeam11,
Bhavit
Sheth,
COO
&
Co-Founder,
Dream11
&
Dream
Sports;
Joy
Bhattacharjya,
Sports
Producer
&
VP,
Baseline
Ventures;
Nikhil
Vyas,
Managing
Partner
&
CEO,
ITW
Mediaworx;
Siddharth
Chury,
AVP-
Global
Partnerships,
NBA
India;
Jeet
Banerjee,
MD,
Gameplan
Sports;
Kishore
Taid,
Co-Founder
&
CEO,
enJogo;
Gopal
Jain,
Senior
Advocate,
Supreme
Court
of
India;
Vaibhav
Kakkar,
Partner,
Saraf
&
Partners;
Santosh
Mathew,
Founding
Partner,
Ninan
&
Mathew;
Prashant
Rao,
Partner,
TMT
Consulting,
Deloitte;
Girish
Menon,
Partner
–
Deal
Advisory
and
Head
–
M&E,
KPMG
India;
Rameesh
Kailasam,
President
&
CEO,
IndiaTech.org
and
Nandan
Kamath,
Principal
Lawyer,
LawNK.
Mr
Amrit
Mathur,
FIFS
Spokesperson
(Member
of
Fantasy
Sports
Regulatory
Authority),
said,
“Fantasy
sports
have
emerged
strongly
in
the
last
few
years,
so
much
so
that
it
has
contributed
to
the
growth
of
the
overall
sports
ecosystem
of
our
nation.
OFS
engages
fans
with
real-life
sports
such
as
cricket,
volleyball,
football,
basketball,
kabaddi,
etc.
by
providing
a
platform
to
create
their
own
virtual
teams
containing
counterparts
of
real-life
players
from
both
the
teams
participating
in
an
upcoming
officially
sanctioned
match.
This
is
the
key
distinguisher
for
Fantasy
Sports
from
online
gaming.”
He
further
added,
“We
want
to
build
a
system
of
continuous
and
constructive
engagement
with
all
the
state
governments,
which
is
an
ongoing
dynamic
exercise.
We’ve
been
receiving
tremendous
support
from
them
to
be
able
to
execute
this.”
The
last
session
of
the
event
on
the
evolving
legal
landscape
of
OFS
saw
a
focused
discussion
on
the
recent
Hon’ble
Supreme
Court
judgement
that
reaffirmed
the
legality
of
fantasy
sports
format,
as
offered
by
Dream11
basis
the
FIFS
Charter,
and
upheld
the
judgement
passed
by
Hon’ble
Rajasthan
High
Court.
These
judgments
are
instrumental
in
legitimizing
the
business
and
reducing
the
ambiguity
around
the
industry.
Given
that
the
Public
Gambling
Act
of
1867,
which
has
been
adopted
by
most
states,
was
framed
during
an
age
with
no
technology,
Mr.
Gopal
Jain,
Senior
Advocate,
Supreme
Court
of
India,
emphasized
that
there
is
a
need
for
the
Central
Government
to
collaborate
with
the
State
Governments
to
remove
extant
ambiguity
and
allow
for
industry’s
growth.
Source:
Media
Release
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