South Korean game maker Krafton announced Friday that India would allow Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) to be reopened for a trial period following a 10-month ban.
Krafton Inc (259960. KS) said South Korea’s foreign affairs and culture ministries spoke with Indian colleagues to ease the restriction.
Last July, the Indian authorities suspended Krafton’s flagship game BGMI over data-sharing and mining in China. Tencent (0700. HK) holds 13.5% of Krafton.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Indian deputy minister for Information Technology, tweeted that the game was approved for a three-month trial after it met server location and data security requirements.
Daishin Securities analyst Jeeeun Lee said Krafton would not be affected by political disputes with China.
“It will be tough for India to impose an outright ban on companies affiliated with China over political issues when they operate through a local corporation that hire Indian workers like Krafton,” she said.
Krafton shares surged 1.45% on Friday, outperforming the KOSPI index’s 0.89%.
BGMI had over 100 million Indian users before being removed from Alphabet Inc.’s (GOOGL.O) Google Play Store and Apple Inc.’s App Store. The game’s Facebook page promises a download soon.
Chandrasekhar stated that the government would monitor additional user harm and addiction issues during the trial before deciding.
After New Delhi banned PUBG in 2020, Krafton launched BGMI.
After a 2020 border conflict, the authorities banned more than 300 Chinese apps, including TikTok, including PUBG. The government also scrutinized Chinese investments in Indian companies.
