PUBG: Battlegrounds (previously known as Player-unknown's Battlegrounds, or simply PUBG)[1] is an online multiplayer battle royale game developed and published by PUBG Corporation (current PUBG Studios), a subsidiary of Blue hole (current Kraft-on). The game is based on previous mods that were created by Brendan Greene for other games, inspired by the 2000 Japanese film Battle Royale, and expanded into a standalone game under Greene's creative direction. The original PUBG: Battlegrounds has sold over 75 million copies on personal computers and game consoles as of 2022,[2] while the more successful PUBG Mobile global version has accumulated 1 billion downloads as of March 2021 and grossed over $7.2 billion on mobile devices as of December 2020.
PUBG was first released for Microsoft Windows via Steam's early access beta program in March 2017, with a full release in December 2017
Pushing back on digital colonialism was also a strong sign that India will not tolerate Chinese attempts to usurp or even influence any Indian asset, including consumer data.
This theme played out strongly around the world. Its India Instagram page has 8.1 million followers, and technology web pages publish the game’s redeem codes regularly.
It is not well understood that the Sea Group has significant Chinese connections too, though being based in Singapore.
In April 2020, the Indian government issued a directive (“Press Note 3”) to regulate all foreign direct investment (FDI) coming from countries that share a land border with India. LinkedIn has several ads advertising jobs at Shopee, and many profiles on the professional networking site already display Shopee as the current employer. While PUBG was removed from Indian mobile stores mainly due to the Tencent link, the new launch also has the same link, albeit indirectly. This is the backdoor that may be used by other firms as well.
Shopee, a popular e-commerce app, has been hiring in India extensively. Nonetheless, it is instructive to look at their corporate structure.
Shopee is part of the Sea Group, which is a parent firm for several digital businesses. Any investment from these countries could not take the automatic route, even where allowed at a sectoral level as per the extant FDI policy.
In the game, up to one hundred players parachute onto an island and scavenge for weapons and equipment to kill others while avoiding getting killed themselves. The game received several Games of the Year nominations, among other accolades. PUBG Mobile has been banned in some countries for allegedly being harmful and addictive to younger players.
Later last year, the government proceeded to ban several Chinese apps from the Indian mobile stores in the wake of the Galway Valley clash with China. Shopee is a Singapore-based popular shopping app, which is an e-commerce, mobile-based business. One of its business models in the region is to ship goods from small Chinese firms to other countries via a marketplace.
It is not confirmed that they will for sure launch an Indian business. As these businesses search for new bounce-back opportunities, they are increasingly looking to re-enter India through the backdoor.
We already saw an example of this with the popular game PUB G coming back to India through the South Korean firm Kraft-on. The Sea Group was previously G arena, a firm that restructured in 2019 to make Sea Group the parent entity for various business interests. While this theoretically impacted several countries, the main target was China.
In the pandemic-led recessionary environment, Chinese firms were actively scouting for investment as well as hostile buying opportunities in the corporate space. The Indian measures were hailed in several countries and indeed, the Chinese technology sector has since been in a tailspin. Arena itself started focusing on the gaming business of the Sea Group, while Shoppe became the flagship digital and social commerce business.
Arena provides a platform for several games. Gaming enthusiasts in India are already familiar with this multiplayer battle mobile game. Perhaps the Indian hiring is to support supply chain, logistics and analytics functions for the Korean market as some of their job openings suggest. The Indian government needs to plug this gap and prevent the proliferation of such Chinese backdoor in the country.
The author is a chartered accountant with interests in social entrepreneurship, culture, dharma issues and agriculture, India acted early and proactively to thwart this threat.
The press note ensured that all investment coming in from India’s neighboring countries follows the government route, which requires prior permission. Tencent holds 23.3% of the voting rights in the firm as per their annual report for the year 2020. The Chinese firm Tencent has an investment in Kraft-on. Many countries around the world were beginning to get wary of a potential Chinese takeover threat to their businesses. Free Fire, one of their offerings, is available in India already. Increasing global scrutiny and an illiberal domestic crackdown by the Chinese regime has smothered the consumer internet businesses. Tencent holds 43% of Class B shares, effectively ensuring that no key business decision is taken without Tencent approval.
These examples show how China-led and controlled investments can still find ways to enter India, though it may not be apparent on the face of it, as the holding companies may be located outside China. See Group employs dual class shares, where the ordinary Class A shares have lower voting rights. Following the uncalled-for aggression and territorial heist that China attempted in Lambada, this measure became an integral part of a strong Indian response. It is a big firm in South East Asia, working in various models like consumer to consumer as well as business to consumer. In fact, the annual report lists Ten cent involvement as one of the key risk items – “our founder and Ten cent have substantial influence over our business, including significant corporate actions such as mergers, consolidations, sales of all or substantially all of our assets, election of directors and other significant corporate actions.”
See Group also mandates that any significant business reconfiguration will require a nod of 80% of Class B ordinary shares.
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