iWorld
Online presence, a must for TV channels, says PepperMedia’s Radhakrishnan Ramachandran
MUMBAI: Narendra Modi dreams of a ‘Digital India’ as do many others who are working towards achieving the same goal. One of them is PepperMedia founder and CEO Radhakrishnan Ramachandran.
Ramachandran entered the digital space almost 15 years ago, when it was in its nascent stage. With the launch of India Syndicate, which was later followed by iStream.com, Ramachandran has seen the online video segment grow from scratch in India.
“With iStream.com, we ventured into the world of online video segment with Youtube and established a good platform. Through this initiative we helped the likes of MTV and Colors launch their channels on Youtube. We also worked on MSN videos and Yahoo for Yahoo Cricket. We had raised $5 million from SAIF for launching istream.com as a VOD play. However, had to shut it down in 2013 since the second round of funding didn’t happen. ,” recalls Ramachandran, adding he didn’t lose faith in the medium and went on to launch his third venture, an MCN, (PepperMedia) with personal financial backing.
Talking about the plans ahead, Ramachandaran says, “The next 12-18 months, our focus will be on Youtube because nobody else has been able to crack the model. Of course, we have Netflix and Hulu aboard but in India, it is only Youtube, which has been able to successfully monetise and hence we will focus on that.”
In the online video segment, where monetisation is the biggest challenge, consumption pattern has changed over the years. Making revenue with plans in place, a startup focused on creating original online video content and building video solutions for brands and media entities, aims to marry content and technology. To achieve the same, PepperMedia recently appointed Milind Naik as its director of technology.
“If you are looking at building a sustainable business model in the MCN space, technology is one of the core accelerators. It will play a key role in simplifying the model for brand managers, by helping them analyse the impact of their video campaigns on platforms like Youtube,” says Ramachandran. He adds, “Our team is building tools, which will help brands monetise.”
The startup is looking at enhancing the MCN model by bringing together TV networks, celebrities, content creators and brands.
“We are powering TV networks on the digital world as we offer them end-to-end solutions and have revenue sharing deal with them. We hope to rope in celebs and create content with them for the virtual world. Content creators are someone, who have the talent to become stars online across languages and platforms,” Ramachandran says.
He further draws concern over the critical issue of getting brands associated with the entire network. “There are two business models – one, the more views you get on Youtube, the more money you get out of it. Second, can we also have a premium model where you can get brands to marry with the content? So, that will be the primary area of focus,” he informs.
For instance, in July 2014, the company had partnered with fashion retail major Megamart to launch an online reality show for designers. Titled ‘Megamart Fashion Designer of the Year,’ the show aimed at discovering the top talent in the fashion designing space in the country.
Being part of the online video ecosystem for a long time now, Ramachandran believes that it is the company’s job to lure brands to open their minds and their purses. “It would mean building tools that would help brands build engaged audiences and monitor their influence metrics. It would also mean creating customised decks for brands that would help them analyse the impact of their video campaigns on platforms like YouTube,” he states.
Nonetheless, he is happy that things have changed and continue to move towards a better phase. Recalling earlier days, Ramachandaran says, “In 2008-2009, it was very difficult to convince TV channels to put their content online. But today most of them have their own video-on-demand platforms. Its good to know that they have realised if they don’t take this route, there is bound to be trouble in the future.”
Citing the example of the West, Ramachandaran believes that over the coming years, the number of people watching content on television will also decrease. “As more and more people consume content on mobile, especially regional content, VoD needs to be on everyone’s game plan and need to tweak their strategy to suit the consumer,” he advises.
Though there is a huge gap between the West and India’s online monetisation system, there is hope as investors are showing interest in the transparent medium. To build sustainable and monetisable concepts, products and global audiences, the year 2015 will play an important role in PepperMedia’s future plans. “If we get brands on board and have the best technology to do so, then MCN will soon go through a purple patch in our country too,” he concludes.
Gaming
India’s new online gaming rules take effect today, banning money games and creating a regulator
The rules, in force from today, separate e-sports from gambling and impose jail terms and stiff fines on violators
NEW DELHI: India’s online gaming sector woke up this morning to a new reality. The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026, came into force today, May 1st, turning a year of legislative intent into enforceable law. The message from New Delhi is blunt: e-sports and social games are welcome; online money games are not.
The rules operationalise the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming (PROG) Act, passed by Parliament in August 2025. Together, they represent the most sweeping regulatory intervention India has made in its booming digital gaming market, one that generated Rs 23,200 crore in 2024 and is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 11 per cent to reach Rs 31,600 crore by 2027. The stakes, in every sense, could not be higher.
A sector out of control
The urgency behind the legislation is not hard to find. An estimated 45 crore Indians have been affected by online money gaming platforms, with losses exceeding Rs 20,000 crore. Addiction, financial ruin, money laundering, and suicides have all been linked to the sector. Seventy-seven per cent of the market’s revenues came from transaction-based games, a figure that made regulators deeply uneasy.
The government’s response, effective as of today, is categorical. Online money games, whether based on chance, skill, or any mix of the two, are banned outright. So is their advertising, promotion, and facilitation. Banks and payment processors are barred from handling related transactions. Unlawful platforms can be blocked under the Information Technology Act, 2000.
The penalties are designed to sting. Offering or facilitating online money games can attract up to three years in jail and a fine of up to Rs 1 crore, or both. Repeat offenders face a minimum of three years, extendable to five, with fines between Rs 1 crore and Rs 2 crore. Advertising such games carries up to two years in prison and fines of up to Rs 50 lakh, with repeat violations attracting higher penalties still. Cyber cell officers at state and union territory levels, including at police station, district, and commissionerate levels, are empowered to investigate offences.
The new sheriff in town
At the centre of the new framework sits the Online Gaming Authority of India, a digital-first regulator constituted as an attached office of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, headquartered in Delhi. It is chaired by the additional secretary of MeitY and includes joint secretary-level representation from home affairs, finance, information and broadcasting, youth affairs and sports, and law and justice, a deliberately multi-sectoral design built for a complex sector.
The authority’s powers are broad. It will maintain and publish lists of online money games, investigate complaints, issue directions, orders, and codes of practice, hear appeals on user grievances, and coordinate with financial institutions and law enforcement to ensure effective and timely action.
Its decisions on game classification are to be completed within 90 days, a time-bound commitment that industry players have welcomed after years of regulatory ambiguity. Classification can be triggered by the authority acting on its own initiative, by an application from a service provider, or by a notification from the central government. Games will be assessed on objective factors: whether stakes are involved, whether players expect monetary winnings, the revenue model, and whether in-game assets can be monetised outside the game. The outcome is recorded in a determination order specific to the game and provider.
E-sports gets its moment
While the crackdown on money gaming dominates today’s headlines, the rules also carve out a structured path for e-sports and online social games. Registration, required when notified by the central government, applies to all games offered as e-sports and is based on factors including risk to users, scale, financial transactions, and country of origin. A successful application yields a digital certificate of registration with a unique number, valid for up to ten years. Service providers must display registration details, designate a point of contact, comply with data retention requirements, and follow directions on facilitating payments.
Online money games are explicitly ineligible for recognition or registration as e-sports under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025. The separation is deliberate, and the industry has noticed.
Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming, called today’s operationalisation “encouraging,” pointing to publisher-led registration of esports titles and a time-bound determination process as creating “much-needed certainty for all stakeholders.” He added that the “continued emphasis on clearly separating esports from online money gaming is critical in preserving the integrity of competitive gaming as a skill-driven discipline.” He described it as “a proud moment to see official acknowledgement of the broader benefits of responsible esports and gaming, from building confidence, discipline, and teamwork to creating new career pathways for young talent,” and said the framework sets “a strong foundation for the ecosystem to scale in a more structured and globally competitive manner.”
Animesh Agarwal, co-founder and chief executive of S8UL, was equally bullish. “This clarity is critical in unlocking investor confidence and attracting multi-genre brands, while also enabling organisations to take a more long-term view, whether in investing in talent, scaling teams, or building globally competitive formats,” he said, adding that it “strengthens trust among audiences and mainstream stakeholders, positioning esports not just as a sport, but as a fast-growing youth entertainment category in India.”
But Agarwal urged caution on several fronts. There remains limited clarity around financial frameworks, particularly in how esports earnings are treated by banks and financial institutions. A well-defined pathway for the formal recognition or registration of esports teams is still evolving, as are structured player protections. He also called for smoother visa processes for esports athletes competing in international tournaments and for government support in developing infrastructure, including bootcamps, training facilities, and access to high-performance equipment across titles.
Vishal Parekh, chief operating officer of CyberPowerPC India, pointed to downstream effects on education and careers. “With formal recognition and policy backing, colleges and institutions are more likely to take the sector seriously, whether through dedicated esports infrastructure, training programmes, or curriculum integration,” he said, adding that this helps students view gaming as a viable career spanning roles across competitive play, content, game development, and allied industries. He noted that as esports gains prominence in global multi-sport events, the framework strengthens India’s position in international competitive gaming, and called on the ecosystem to provide the right infrastructure and access to high-performance hardware to unlock opportunities in talent development and job creation.
Protecting users, one safeguard at a time
The rules introduce a layered system of user protections calibrated to the risk profile of each game. These include age verification, age gating, time restrictions, parental controls, user reporting tools, counselling support, and fair-play and integrity monitoring. Service providers must disclose their safety features and internal grievance mechanisms when applying for determination or registration.
A two-tier grievance redressal system sits atop these safeguards. Users who are dissatisfied with a platform’s resolution can escalate to the authority within 30 days. The authority aims to dispose of such appeals within a further 30 days. A second appeal lies before the secretary of MeitY, who must also endeavour to resolve matters within 30 days. Enforcement proceedings will be conducted in digital mode wherever possible, with cases targeted for resolution within 90 days from receipt of a complaint.
Penalties under the framework are proportionate, taking into account gain from non-compliance, loss to users, the gravity of the offence, and whether violations are recurring. Mitigation efforts by service providers will also be considered when determining penalties. All penalties imposed under the Act will be credited to the Consolidated Fund of India.
The money follows the rules
For investors and founders, the implications are immediate and significant. Sagar Nair, head of incubation at LVL Zero Incubator, a 100-day sprint designed to accelerate early-stage gaming startups across India, argues that with real-money gaming now prohibited, capital will shift “away from transaction-driven models toward content-led, IP-driven, and global-first gaming businesses.” He acknowledged trade-offs: for operators with exposure to real-money formats, the market becomes more restrictive in the near term. But he argued that by clearly separating esports and non-money gaming from online money gaming, “India is positioning itself as a hub for responsible, creative, and scalable game development.” The opportunity, he said, is “to view India not just as a monetisation-first market, but as a talent, IP, and scale market,” adding that “for founders and investors willing to adapt, this shift could ultimately strengthen India’s position in the global gaming landscape.”
The government frames the wider impact in equally ambitious terms: a boost to India’s creative economy and digital exports, new career pathways for young people, protection for families from predatory platforms, and a stronger voice in global digital governance. India, it argues, offers a model for other countries grappling with the same tensions between gaming’s economic promise and its social risks, one that shows innovation and strong safeguards need not be mutually exclusive.
Whether the framework delivers on those promises will depend on enforcement, always the hardest part. But from today, the architecture is firmly in place: a regulator with teeth, a classification system with deadlines, penalties designed to deter, and a clear dividing line between games that build careers and games that destroy finances. For a sector that has grown fast and governed itself loosely, May 1st, 2026 is the day the free ride ends.
