Big Update For PUBG Lovers! Battlegrounds Mobile India To Be Relaunched, Krafton Secures Govt Approval

New Delhi: South Korean giant Krafton announced Friday that it has secured approval from Indian authorities to resume operations of the Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) video game.

The company plans to make the title available for download in the South Asian market "soon".

“We are very grateful to the Indian authorities for allowing us to resume operations of Battlegrounds Mobile India. We would like to express our thanks to our Indian gaming community for their support and patience over the past few months,” Sean Hyunil Sohn, CEO of Crafton India, said in a statement.

“We are excited to announce that Battlegrounds Mobile India will be available for download soon and we can't wait to welcome you back to our platform. We are committed to providing exceptional products and services to our users in India and abroad, and we look forward to continuing our journey with you.”

The move comes less than two years after the Indian government banned Krafton showcasing PUBG in the country.

It was in September 2020 when the Indian government banned PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) Mobile, along with 117 Chinese apps, citing a threat to India's sovereignty, integrity and defense under Section 69A of the Indian Information Technology Act.2000.

PUBG had nearly 33 million users in the country and was growing rapidly.

In November 2020, it was first revealed that PUBG Mobile would be relaunched in India under the new entity 'PUBG Mobile India'.

In the same month, PUBG Studios and South Korean video game company Krafton PUBG India Private Ltd. registered under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to re-launch PUBG Mobile in the country.

Krafton announced the release of BGMI in May 2021. The game was finally released on July 2 for Android devices and on August 18 for iOS devices.

Within a year, BGMI had surpassed 100 million registered users.

Later, Google and Apple were ordered by the Indian government to block the BGMI gaming app from their online stores.

Google and Apple pulled the popular battle royale game BGMI from their respective app stores.

The ban was under Section 69a of the Information Technology Act 2000.

The non-profit organization Prahar has claimed that BGMI is no different from the old PUBG as it "poses a threat to the sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the state and public order".

Also Read: Micron to invest $3.7 billion in Japan for new DRAM chips