Meta to Allow Alcohol and Gaming Ads in India Amid Regulatory Concerns

According to industry sources, Meta declared that it would allow alcohol and real money gaming companies to advertise in India, APAC, and LATAM. Starting from August 27,2024, businesses in India would be able to onboard on WhatsApp Business Platform for sending out messages related to alcohol, real money gambling as well as over the counter products.

It is yet to be seen what government’s response would be as advertising of alcohol product is prohibited in India. In fact, not long ago, Union Health Ministry had put pressure on the BCCI as well as the SAI to take action to stop surrogate advertising of tobacco and alcohol products by sportsmen.

Further, advertisements of real money gaming are also highly regulated under the regulations. While betting and gambling activities are banned under the various State laws, few games of skill have been held to be valid under the constitution in various judgements by the Supreme Court.

Through amendments made to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, on April 6, 2023, the Ministry of Electronics and IT has ensured that all online games or sites involving wagering will be completely banned, including advertising and any kind of presence. For this purpose, the definition of ‘Permissible Online Game’ has been incorporated into the rules.