60-75 million Indian gamers spend on in-app purchases: Rooter’s Piyush Kumar

India’s gaming ARPU is a mere $3.03, indicating a significant scope for monetisation

Around 60-75 million of India’s nearly 500 million gamers are regularly spending on video games through in-app purchases, Piyush Kumar, founder of game streaming and commerce platform Rooter told Moneycontrol, while highlighting significant scope for monetisation growth in the sector.

He expects the number of paying users to increase further following the government's ban on real-money games (RMG).

"I believe that the potential of monetisation in the Indian gaming industry is huge. We estimate that around 200-250 million gamers are playing midcore to hardcore games such as Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), and Valorant, among others. These are more time consuming and require skills to progress," Kumar said.

A significant portion of the 500 million players are casual gamers who are primarily monetised through ads, he told Moneycontrol ahead of a report launch outlining the 'non-RMG' opportunities in India's gaming industry. The report was released on September 25 by early-stage venture capital firm Lightbox, an investor in Rooter.

Gaming ARPU: India vs other markets

According to Lightbox’s findings, India’s average revenue per user (ARPU) is a mere $3.03, which pales in comparison to player spending of $215 in the United States and $68 in China. The firm however notes that this indicates ample scope for monetisation.

"When you look at ARPU from the perspective of 500 million people, it will look less. But when you look at an ARPU from the perspective of the gamers who are actually spending money, they are paying a good amount," Kumar said.

For instance, he said that users who are buying gaming currencies on Rooter are spending an average of about $30 per month. "Their first-time purchase ranges between $18-20 per month, and as they become repeat buyers, it goes up to $40," Kumar said.

Rooter had introduced a digital marketplace called Rooter Shop at the end of last year. It offers in-game currencies, vouchers, and digital gift cards for over 100 brands across a range of categories. This includes mobile games like BGMI (Battlegrounds Mobile India) and Free Fire, PC games like Valorant, and gaming platforms such as Xbox, PlayStation, and Steam.

"The objective of everything we are doing is to increase the paying user base, which will now increase further because real-money gaming is no longer there. We believe a certain percentage of people will come here and will be able to pay more," Kumar said.

Read: Bitkraft Ventures to step up India investments after Centre's new online gaming law

Can India become a global gaming powerhouse?

The report states that a combination of regulatory clarity from the government's new online gaming law and India's large but under-monetised user base gives the country a 'credible shot' at becoming a global gaming powerhouse.

"India is on the brink of a new era – one defined not by betting apps or cash contests, but by the creation of durable, culturally resonant, and monetisable gaming experiences," the report stated.

It further stated, "The signal to gaming companies, local and global, and investors is to redeploy talent and capital towards domestically produced IP, live-ops, adtech and alternative payments that monetise India’s vast, price-sensitive user base via micro-transactions, subscriptions and in-game ads."

India's new online gaming legislation prohibits online money games, where a user makes a deposit, directly or indirectly, with the expectation of earning winnings on that deposit.

As a result, several RMG companies, including Dream11, Gameskraft, Mobile Premier League (MPL), Games24x7, and Zupee, have suspended money-based contests and games and have pivoted their platforms to a free-to-play model.

The RMG industry generated about $2.4 billion in revenue in FY24, accounting for a bulk of the revenues of India's overall gaming industry that stood at $3.8 billion for the year.

Read: MC interview: “Lost 95% of revenues, 100% of profits, but remain a delusional optimist”: Dream11 founder Harsh Jain on real money gaming ban

Investor sentiment on RMG ban

Sandeep Murthy, Managing Partner at early-stage venture capital firm Lightbox, told Moneycontrol that the risk had existed for a while and everyone was relatively aware of it, but "sudden shocks to the system are never a positive thing."

"As an investor, you look for consistency in a regulatory environment…But I think anyone investing in this space was well aware that there was an overhang. Since the GST had come in as well, there were initial indications that there would be an overhang in the business," he said.

What will drive the next phase of growth in Indian gaming?

Moneycontrol has previously reported that in-app purchases are likely to drive the next phase of growth in the country's gaming industry, fueled by increased adoption of digital payments through UPI and a growing base of people willing to pay for content.

In-app purchases have been growing at an annual rate of 40 percent over the past four to five years and are currently estimated to be worth $1 billion. They are projected to reach $4 billion within the next four to five years, driven by accelerating user spending, as seen in an uptick in micro-transactions across gaming apps and digital content platforms.

Companies are also experimenting with additional monetisation models such as subscriptions and gaming commerce.

For instance, in May 2025, Rooter announced that the company witnessed a surge in its FY25 revenues to Rs 82 crore ($10 million), following its expansion into the gaming commerce business. Revenue increased by 120 percent year-on-year (YoY) from Rs 38 crore ($4.5 million) in FY24.

"The propensity to pay exists. The reality is, we’ve never given people a reason to pay. Now, as more people get content they actually want, they’re willing to pay for it," Murthy told Moneycontrol.

The report also highlights other opportunities in the sector, including game-based learning, skill development games, and gaming community platforms.

Platform businesses that work across every element of the gaming ecosystem represent another key area of opportunity, Murthy and Kumar noted.