PUBG was earlier published by a Chinese company in India, and was subsequently banned in September. The new version is published by PUBG Corp., a South Korean subsidiary

New Delhi: Indian gamers will once again get the opportunity to play the popular multiplayer game PlayerUnknown’s Battleground (PUBG), months after it was banned by the government.

According to a Reuters report, PUBG Corporation, a subsidiary of the South Korean company Krafton Inc., announced Thursday that it will be launching a new version of the game, PUBG Mobile India, soon.

“With privacy and security of Indian player data being a top priority for PUBG Corporation, the company will conduct regular audits and verifications on the storage systems holding Indian users’ personally identifiable information to reinforce security,” the company said in a statement.

In September, the Indian government had banned 118 Chinese-origin mobile applications after an intense border standoff between the two countries. The government had noted that the apps were “prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order”.

The Indian mobile version of PUBG was published by Tencent Games, a Chinese company, and therefore it was also included in the ban. However, since then, PUBG Corp. has taken over all publishing rights from Tencent in India.

“PUBG Corporation has made the decision to no longer authorize the PUBG MOBILE franchise to Tencent Games in India. Moving forward, PUBG Corporation will take on all publishing responsibilities within the country,” PUBG Corp. had said on 7 September, in a statement.

Investments In India

PUBG Corporation’s parent company Krafton Inc. is also set to invest in India and has planned to spend approximately $100 million dollars in the country to boost video games, e-sports and game development, Reuters noted.

It will also set up an office in India, with over 100 employees to focus on business and e-sports.

The new PUBG game for India will also have a feature to limit the time players spend on the app. A common complaint from Indian parents has been the inordinate amount of time children and teenagers spend on the application.

According to analytics firm Sensor Towers, India is the app’s biggest market and accounts for nearly 29 per cent of the total downloads worldwide.