Mobile Premier League to lay off 60% India staff after govt ban on paid games
Bengaluru: Mobile Premier League (MPL), one of India’s largest online gaming platforms, will lay off about 60% of its local workforce following the government’s decision to ban paid online games, a company source said.
According to a report published by The Hindu, the layoffs will affect around 300 of MPL’s 500 India employees across marketing, finance, operations, engineering and legal. The report says that this is the first major industry reaction to the new law by government, which banned online paid games this month, citing risk of financial losses and addiction among youth.
The move has shaken an industry that had been projected to grow to $3.6 billion by 2029 and has attracted investments from Tiger Global and Peak XV Partners. MPL and rival Dream11 gained popularity by offering fantasy cricket games with cash rewards.
In an internal email to staff on Sunday, MPL CEO Sai Srinivas said, “With a heavy heart we have decided that we will be downsizing our India team significantly.” While he did not mention the number of job cuts, he added that India contributed about 50% of MPL’s revenues, and that “this change would mean that we would no longer be making any revenue from India in the near future.”
MPL will now focus on free-to-play games in India while strengthening its presence in the U.S. market. The company was last valued at $2.3 billion in 2021, according to Pitchbook, and had an India revenue of around $100 million last year. It also operates free-to-play games in Europe and offers paid games in the U.S. and Brazil.
Meanwhile, rival Dream11, valued at $8 billion, has also shut down its fantasy cricket operations. Several other poker and rummy apps have suspended services. Last week, gaming firm A23 challenged the ban, though MPL and Dream11 have opted against legal action and MPL declined to comment on Reuters’ queries.
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Cong MLAs protest in Assembly seeking action against BJP legislator for remarks on Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka Legislative Assembly has witnessed chaotic scenes, with ruling Congress MLAs trooping into the well of the House, demanding the Speaker take action against BJP MLA Munirathna, accusing him of inappropriate behaviour and making personal comments against Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.
The incident occurred on Thursday while Shivakumar was replying to a discussion on issues relating to Bengaluru. Shivakumar is also the Minister in-charge of Bengaluru Development.
As Munirathna made certain comments on Shivakumar, demanding answers to some of the issues raised by him concerning the city, Congress members took strong objection to it, calling it "inappropriate behaviour".
Munirathna demanded that Shivakumar answer his question, making remarks against the latter, even after Speaker U T Khader declared the discussion on Bengaluru closed and proceeded to the Question Hour. This further enraged Congress MLAs.
Congress legislators demanded that the Chair expel Munirathna from the House.
The ruling party MLAs then trooped into the well of the House, demanding that the Chair give its ruling and announce action against Munirathna by expelling him.
As the chaos continued, Leader of Opposition R Ashoka urged the Speaker to end the stalemate by ensuring that Munirathna gets a reply to the issues on which he is demanding answers, through officers, and expunge certain inappropriate comments that were made.
However, Congress members demanded that Munirathna apologise or that the Speaker suspend him.
Khader, while expunging the comments made during the exchange, said, "Karnataka is not known for revenge politics, but humanity and harmony. This is the tradition of this House. We must uphold the honour and decorum of the House. This is not a place to display power or indulge in personal attacks."
Warning strict action against any act of indiscipline, he said, "We should ensure that such things don't repeat."
He said the Chair can give a ruling expelling or suspending a member only when the government names him or her.
Following the Speaker's warning against any act of misconduct and a request to them, Congress members withdrew their protest.
Earlier in the day, Shivakumar and Munirathna engaged in a verbal altercation after the former referred to cases against the MLA, which the Speaker had expunged from the records.
