Reels to roadblocks: Influencer economy struggles as online gaming ban wipes out crores in deals

Many influencers, including top-tier celebrities and content creators, have lost lucrative endorsement deals, noted Sumon K Chakrabarti, Co Founder and CEO, Buffalo Soldiers, a creative agency.

"Even agencies like us have suffered. We used to work closely with a couple of brands like First Games but that flow has stopped."

An official of an influencer marketing firm noted that as much as Rs 20 lakh payment is on hold by a top online gaming firm after the ban came into effect.

"Big-ticket influencers were sometimes paid nearly Rs 50 lakh per month for RMG (real money gaming) deals while mid‑tier creators earned around Rs 1–1.5 lakh/month from such campaigns. All that is gone. Absolutely gone. You can easily look at an estimated loss of over Rs 1,500 crore annually. Celebrity deals alone would contribute to Rs 300 crore in endorsement fees. While it is hard to quantify impact on smaller creators, agencies dealing with such influencers would be losing almost Rs 20 lakh/month in topline revenue on an average," Chakrabarti said.

An estimated 25 percent of influencer collaborations, especially those rooted in gaming culture, are expected to vanish, notably impacting influencers focused on fantasy sports, poker, and betting content, estimated Yasin Hamidani, Director, Media Care Brand Solutions.

India's influencer marketing sector, which is one of the fastest-growing segments in digital AdEx (Advertising Expenditure), was valued between Rs 3,000 to 3,500 crore in the first half of 2025.

No play, no pay

Brands like Probo, HaaNaa, Vision11, Zupee, and several Ludo-based apps have suspended their campaigns, pointed out a top official of a talent management and influencer marketing firm, who didn't wish to be named. "These companies were among the most aggressive spenders in the influencer marketing space, allocating large budgets consistently."

"On average, each brand was spending at least Rs 2–3 crore per month on influencer marketing. From September onward, with multiple cricket series lined up over the next 7–8 months, these brands had planned significantly larger investments. Collectively, the industry was expecting over Rs 100 crore in marketing spends from this sector alone during that period," the official said, adding that roughly 8 out of every 10 brand deals came from real-money gaming apps.

"For macro creators, those charging premium rates, the majority of high-value deals were almost exclusively from these brands. With the ban, many of these creators are now forced to reconsider pricing and adjust their brand strategies."

The hardest hit are fantasy cricket creators, whose entire content niche had revolved around building teams and strategies for these apps, the official added. "Many of them now have zero brand deals and no immediate alternatives. Their YouTube channels, which relied heavily on this category, have been left without monetizable content, forcing them to rethink how they can sustain themselves."

Most are still in shock and struggling to adapt. "Since their entire presence and audience were built around gaming and fantasy cricket, pivoting means starting almost from scratch. They are currently exploring ways to diversify into broader cricket coverage, lifestyle, or finance, but it will take time before these new directions yield stable opportunities," the official said.

Many creator category feel the pinch

Content creators focused on gaming, fantasy sports, or betting-related content are particularly hit, losing not only revenue but also encountering content removal or algorithmic penalties on platforms like Instagram and YouTube, said Vaibhav Gupta, Co-Founder and CPO (Chief product Officer), KlugKlug, an influencer marketing firm. "The ban liquidates an entire category of deals, affecting both direct earnings and long-tail visibility among engaged audiences."

A few creators on our roster who specialize in cricket content and heavily reliant on brand deals from specific apps, have seen a change in their partnerships and revenue since the ban, said Shubham Singhal (Co Founder and CEO of Dot Media).

"The impact is not limited to one category. Comedy and lifestyle influencers have also been affected, with many losing brand partnerships. The size of these deals varied, but overall, it's clear that the ban has had far-reaching consequences for influencers across multiple niches," he added.

Ritesh Ujjwal, Co-Founder, Kofluence, an influencer marketing firm, noted that the ban is impacting regional and vernacular content creators, particularly in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and other local languages, who are seeing notable effects as gaming brands had been aggressively expanding into Tier-2 and Tier-3 markets through localized content strategies.

These brand deals with online gaming apps were not small barter campaigns, these were sizable contracts that often ran across months, with performance payouts tied to app installs and deposits, noted Ambika Sharma, Founder and Chief Strategist, Pulp Strategy, a marketing and advertising agency.

"For many mid-tier creators, RMG was a dominant category, so the ban cut off a major income stream almost overnight. Influencer marketing platforms are also feeling the squeeze. Budgets already allocated are frozen, and in some cases, payments are stuck in escrow-like arrangements. For agencies, the sudden stop has disrupted monthly cash flows. The business lost is material."

She said that the setback is visible in reduced campaign volumes, tighter scrutiny from brands, and an immediate need for both creators and platforms to diversify categories beyond gaming.

Heavy dependence

Some marketers pointed out that the heavy dependence of influencers and agencies on the online gaming category has left the influencer economy fragile.

The ban highlights the fragility of an ecosystem where one regulatory move can wipe out nearly a fifth of projected revenues, said Shreya Badola, Group account Director of Branding, Wit & Chai Group.

She said that campaigns that once drove payouts ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh per creator and in some cases up to Rs 2 crore per week for top-tier influencers are now frozen, leaving both agencies and creators with stuck payments and paused contracts. Influencer platforms are now sitting on unpaid invoices running into crores, while creators face income instability. "This shows that influencer marketing in India needs stronger diversification and resilience, so that creators and brands aren’t overly dependent on one volatile category," she added.

Sharing similar sentiments, Kushal Bhuva, Associate Vice President, Influencer Marketing and Video at White Rivers Media said that the immediate disruption highlighted the heavy dependence on gaming-related partnerships. "But it has also opened doors for diversification into sectors like fintech, e-commerce, and lifestyle."

Adaptation challenges

Ujjwal noted that the sudden nature of the regulatory change has created immediate content strategy decisions for creators. "Those transitioning to fintech, consumer tech, or lifestyle sectors face the challenge of maintaining audience engagement while building authenticity in new categories. This realignment process typically requires 3-6 months to establish credible partnerships in alternative sectors."

He also said that creators in states with historically high gaming engagement particularly Karnataka, Telangana, and parts of Maharashtra are experiencing more pronounced impacts due to their audience's strong affinity for gaming content and higher concentration of gaming brand partnerships.