Krafton’s Entry into India Bears Fruit... PUBG Mobile India Surpasses 100 Million Cumulative Users

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Krafton is reaping the fruits of its entry into the Indian market. 'Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI)', launched in India, has surpassed 100 million cumulative users, expanding the influence of the Battlegrounds intellectual property (IP) locally.

According to Krafton on the 2nd, BGMI, launched in India in July last year, exceeded 100 million cumulative users in just over a year.

BGMI has received positive responses from users by offering India-centric content and products such as Indian festival commemorative events and pricing policies reflecting local purchasing patterns, as well as various collaborations with famous Indian celebrities and influencers. Through this, it ranked first in Google Play revenue in India in April.

The BGMI esports tournament, which began last November with the 'Battlegrounds Mobile India Series 2021', is also progressing smoothly. The Battlegrounds Mobile Pro Series (BMPS) Season 1, which concluded its three-week tournament on the 12th of last month, offered a total prize of 20 million rupees (approximately 330 million KRW), attracting attention as the largest prize pool in Indian esports history.

It garnered significant user interest, achieving a total of 175 million cumulative views. This year, including BMPS Season 1, four professional and amateur tournaments will be held. The total prize money for all tournaments this year amounts to 60 million rupees (approximately 1 billion KRW).

Since last year, Krafton has made eight investments in platforms, esports, game streaming companies, and startups in emerging markets including India. The total accumulated investment amount to date reaches 100 billion KRW.

Changhan Kim, CEO of Krafton, said, "India is an important market for Krafton, and since we have great expectations for the Indian gaming industry, we will actively contribute to growing it into an even stronger market. Krafton will continue to enhance the mobile gaming experience in India through BGMI and consistently seek investment opportunities for the development of the digital ecosystem."