The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has significantly altered its recently released whitepaper titled “Examining Opinion Trading in India,” notably removing all specific references to opinion trading platforms such as Probo, SportsBaazi, and TradeX. The revised document, quietly published on June 17, comes shortly after Galactus Funware Technology, the parent company of Mobile Premier League (MPL), served a ₹50 crore defamation notice on ASCI.
This move is being widely interpreted by industry observers and advertising veterans as a capitulation to mounting pressure and legal threats from controversial opinion trading platforms. Criticism has been swift from within the advertising and media regulation ecosystem, with some prominent figures calling into question ASCI’s firmness in its regulatory mandate.
The updated whitepaper now explicitly states: “This is the updated final version of the Whitepaper. This version supersedes all previous versions of this publication. The contents of this paper have been updated to remove references to any entity and in order to maintain focus on the broader subject matter.” In addition to scrubbing the names of specific entities, ASCI also quietly withdrew sample advertisements that had been flagged in its earlier version, some of which reportedly pertained to platforms currently banned or under intense scrutiny across several Indian states.
Background to the Whitepaper and Industry Concerns:
ASCI initially released its comprehensive whitepaper in May 2025, drawing critical attention to the rapidly growing but largely unregulated sector of opinion trading or prediction markets. The original report highlighted serious concerns regarding the legality, consumer safety, and potentially misleading advertising practices associated with these platforms.
According to data cited by the National Initiative for Consumer Interest (NICI), opinion trading platforms in India have attracted over 50 million users, with annual transactions reportedly exceeding ₹50,000 crore. These platforms engage users in making monetary bets on binary (yes/no) outcomes of real-world events, including sports, politics, and entertainment, operating in a significant regulatory grey zone.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had already issued an advisory on April 29, 2025, cautioning the public that “opinion trading does not fall within regulatory purview of SEBI, as what is traded is not security.” Multiple public interest litigations are also currently pending in Indian courts, seeking a definitive legal interpretation of the status of these platforms.
ASCI’s analysis in its original whitepaper found numerous ads, particularly on social media, that aggressively promoted opinion trading as “skill-based” or “knowledge-driven” games. However, ASCI’s review suggested that many of these promotions appeared to be pure speculation and could pose significant financial risks, especially for young and financially vulnerable groups, often lacking adequate disclaimers.
Legal Pressure and Industry Reaction:
The defamation notice from MPL’s parent company, Galactus Funware Technology, had demanded the withdrawal of the whitepaper, alleging it was biased, defamatory, and relied on tampered advertisements, seeking INR 50 crore in damages. The notice challenged ASCI’s authority to comment on opinion trading, arguing that the self-regulatory body lacked the mandate to categorize such activities as lacking skill, particularly when their legality is still sub-judice.
A senior executive from the real-money gaming (RMG) industry, speaking anonymously, accused ASCI of yielding to entities he described as “notorious.” “ASCI has been forced to bow down to the notorious opinion trading platforms who are clearly trying to build their narratives before a major regulatory body steps in,” the executive stated, further predicting that “If such regulatory action continues, multiple opinion trading platforms will fall apart before the end of this year.”
ASCI has declined to provide a detailed statement on the revisions, with a spokesperson stating, “As per our policy, we do not comment on legal matters.” However, sources within the council have reportedly confirmed that the revision was indeed driven by recent legal developments and the necessity to avoid prejudicing ongoing court proceedings against opinion trading platforms in various High Courts and the Supreme Court.
This development underscores the complex and often contentious regulatory environment surrounding online gaming and prediction markets in India, where the lines between skill-based games, speculation, and outright betting remain legally ambiguous and hotly contested. The updated whitepaper, while maintaining its broader call for regulatory clarity, now navigates these legal sensitivities by adopting a more generalized approach.
Key Highlights:
- ASCI has revised its whitepaper on “Opinion Trading,” removing all specific mentions of platforms like Probo, SportsBaazi, and TradeX.
- This alteration follows a ₹50 crore defamation notice served by MPL’s parent company, Galactus Funware Technology, against ASCI.
- The original whitepaper, released in May 2025, raised concerns about the speculative nature and misleading advertising of opinion trading platforms, which operate in a regulatory grey zone in India.
- Industry experts criticize ASCI’s move as yielding to legal pressure, highlighting ongoing debates and legal challenges regarding the classification and legality of these platforms.