“While we aim to be an 8-trillion-dollar economy, a trillion of that is going to come from the digital economy, and that will mean that gaming will be a very significant part of that,” she added.
The senior Meta executive was speaking during the tech giant’s first ever gaming summit in India, where it also launched a report on the Indian gaming ecosystem called ‘Gaming Playbook’ in collaboration with market research firm GWI. The event, held in Mumbai, saw gaming firms like Dream 11 and Nazara Technologies as well as popular creators participate.
According to the report, India has about 146 million real money gaming (RMG) players, and about 202 million non-RMG casual gamers. Of these, 57% of RMG players and 51% of casual gamers live outside major cities.
Also read | Real-money gaming firms look for cues in Google billing row
Gaming could also become an “export-oriented” sector in India as more firms build products for the world, Devanathan said, which would lead to even more job creation.
Discover the stories of your interest
Of the nearly 3,000 internet users surveyed for the report, about 77% of casual gamers said social media influenced their decision to purchase or download a game, while the same was true for 76% of RMG gamers. “Gaming is one of the top three sectors for Meta globally, and the Indian gaming market is growing faster than any other in the world…we play a very important role in this by driving things like discoverability and remarketing,” said Arun Srinivas, director and head of ads business, Meta India.
Well over half of casual gamers said they have to see an ad two to four times before downloading or purchasing a game, the report added. Also, 78% of casual gamers discovered new games or found news about games through social media platforms.
Also read | Real-money gaming companies look for an ace to beat tax blues
The large majority of both RMG and casual gamers played two to three different games a month, the report found. Beyond this, events like Diwali or the Indian Premier League were crucial to traffic, while a lot of interest was also generated by in-game rewards that helped boost customer loyalty, Srinivas said.
Over half of casual gamers make in-game purchases to unlock premium features, enhance performance, or have an ad-free experience, among other things, the report added.
Srinivas said the outlook for the RMG sector was currently muted due to the recent increase in indirect taxes, as well as the pending notices from the tax department.
In the meantime, Meta was working closely with regulators and state governments in the country. “We have internal policies that require written permissions for RMG firms to run ads, after which they are allocated specific ad accounts. We are also careful that the ads aren’t shown in certain provinces where the games are restricted,” he added.
States like Telangana, Assam, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh have bans on various RMG games.