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Mumbai , India (AFP) – Google removed one of India’s largest digital payment apps from its online store yesterday for violating the rules of the game, a day before the start of the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament. ).
The IPL, the world’s richest national league, has previously been plagued by controversies with corruption and match-fixing cases often taking center stage.
Gambling is illegal in India, but the countdown to the 53-day IPL that begins today has seen a profusion of online advertisements for fantasy sports sites, which are allowed in many parts of the country.
The digital payments platform Paytm had recently launched a fantasy cricket tournament involving cash wagers and violated the Google Play Storepolicies, the Indian firm said in a statement.
“This afternoon, we received a communication from Google who are suspending our application because they believe this is a violation of their Play store gambling policies, ”the company said.
“The Paytm Therefore, the Android application has not been included in the Google list Play store and it is temporarily unavailable to users for new downloads or updates, ”he added.
But Android users who downloaded the app earlier can still use it for transactions.
Early yesterday, Google in a statement it said it would not allow applications in its store that facilitate sports betting or that take “consumers to external websites that allow them to participate in paid tournaments to win real money or cash prizes.”
The Silicon Valley giant did not mention Paytm in the statement.
Cricket has become a key battleground in the fight against point fixing – illegal bets on a certain part of the action, such as how many runs are scored in a switch.
The IPL, which is being held in the UAE behind closed doors due to the new coronavirus pandemic, was hit by a one-time fixes scandal in 2013 that resulted in the suspension of two teams for two years.
Digital payment platforms have seen an increase in demand in India in recent months, and their use doubled in 2020 from the previous year due to coronavirus restrictions, according to consultancy Local Circles.
India’s digital payments market is dominated by Google payment, closely followed by PhonePe, with Paytm ranking a distant third.
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