Back For Good?
BattleGrounds Mobile India is back: So what happened?
With the game set to return to storefronts, how exactly did Krafton get into so much trouble in India?
Company Profile
Krafton
About
KRAFTON is a collective of studios, each with their own distinct creative identity. Our team is always aspiring to evolve, innovate, and create new technology and entertainment experiences that fans can interact and engage with for years to come.
This is the power of KRAFTON continuously generating unparalleled creation based on technology.
Related People
Kim Chang-han
CEO
Accolades
Articles featuring Krafton
Roundup
Revenue Report: Games financials roundup: May 2023
Who's up? Who's down? Here's the latest quarterly financial results from around the world of mobile games, all in one place
Week That Was
Week in Views - What caught our eyes in the last seven days
The Pocketgamer.biz team take their pick of this weeks big news and discuss unexpected returns, making millions and losing them too…
Legislation
BattleGrounds Mobile India to be ‘unbanned’
Just as Krafton promised, the PUBG spin-off will once again be “available for download soon”
Preliminary Performance
Krafton reports record Q1 with $407.8M in sales
Plus a 3% year-on-year increase
Legal
Krafton & NetEase get their day in court over PUBG inspiration dispute
Despite being settled back in 2019 Krafton still claims that two of NetEase’s titles infringe their copyright
Collaborations
PUBG Mobile launches Be@rbrick collaboration
The popular collectible figurine franchise is the next major collab for the battle royale smash
Partnerships
PUBG Mobile upgraded with immersive Dolby Atmos in audio update
The audio manufacturer and publisher Krafton have teamed up to boost in-game audio
Updates
PUBG Mobile’s fifth anniversary brings custom build tools to the game
The mobile battle-royale’s new suite of tools will allow players to build custom modes and maps
New Partnership
S8UL partners with Krafton to launch Road to Valor: Empires in India
The new partnership aims to boost India’s gaming ecosystem
Esports
PUBG Mobile Super League reveals first teams and the importance of SEA region
The new league's teams include notable esports names from all around the world
Mobile Esports
Global Esports CEO Dr Rushindra Sinha weighs in on the state of mobile esports in India
The sector is ripe for disruption, but may be unsustainable
Releases
Krafton's Road To Valour: Empire stands in for BGMI in India
While BGMI remains banned, Krafton seek to regain market share with a new India-specific title
Legislation
Krafton confident that BGMI will be 'unbanned'
The ban severely burned Krafton’s bottom line in mobile battle royale games
Financials
Krafton weathers mobile storm in quarterly financials
Krafton's financials note mobile expansion, the impact of the BGMI ban and floats potential cross-platform release for Project BlackBudget
Creating In Canada
Krafton Montreal opens with reveal of The Bird That Drinks Tears adaptation
The studio is being led by Patrik Méthé, with their first game being based on a series of novels
2022 Highlights
2022 In Review – January’s Best Bits
As the year draws to a close, we take a look back with our pick of the stories that shaped the last twelve months. Starting with… January
Revenue Results
Genshin Impact makes it to $4 billion revenue as PUBG Mobile reaches $9 billion
Installs for both games are down compared to last year
Updates
Krafton reaches November update for New State mobile
Krafton’s latest update for the second instalment in the PUBG franchise includes additional mechanics, and may be a new source of focus
Analysis
China may still be top of the mobile game, but India is closing in
India has been picking up the pace in recent years with a view to overtaking China as the biggest mobile market
Collaborations
Challengermode and PUBG partner to fund amateur esports tournaments
The esports platform Challengermode and PUBG Mobile have partnered to integrate support for, and fund, amateur esports across the globe
Financials
Krafton sees slow 2% growth in Q3 financials and 12% sales dip for PUBG mobile, but stays committed to Indian market
Although Krafton has faced many challenges continuing the operation of PUBG Mobile in India, according to its Q3 financials the company remains committed to the market
Acquisitions
Krafton to acquire The Ascent developer Neon Giant
Krafton’s financials reveal that the company is set to acquire developer Neon Giant, responsible for their debut game “The Ascent”
Hires
Jetsynthesys hires Krafton's ex-Head of Corporate Development
Anuj Tandon, previously Head of Corporate Development for India and MENA with Krafton, has been brought on as CEO of Gaming at Jetsynthesys
News
Krafton Exec exits amidst continued BattleGround Mobile woes
Krafton’s BattleGrounds Mobile India has yet to be reinstated after it was delisted by the Indian government.
News
Mobile Gaming in India grows with 5G and smartphone adoption
The world’s second largest country by population is increasingly adopting mobile gaming as a way to play. Both stumbling blocks and potential boosters being at play.
Best Of 2022
The Top 50 Mobile Game Makers of 2022
The movers and the shakers of the last 12 months
Krafton Not Slowing Down
Krafton Inc reports revenue of $729 million for the first half of 2022
PUBG: Mobile vital to Krafton's successful H1, earning $550 million in mobile business sector
Fertile Battlegrounds
Krafton: PUBG Mobile accounted for 75% revenue in Q1 2022
Of record-high $405.7 million revenue for the period, mobile title recorded $307.1 million alone
Automobile Addition
Lamborghini cars race into PUBG Mobile and Rocket League
Latest of luxury car brand and mobile game collaborations
Esports With Sony
PUBG Mobile partners with Sony to use Xperia as official smartphone for 2022 tournaments
For use by the pro PUBG Mobile teams
Taking The Plunge
Krafton and Solana partner to develop blockchain and NFT games
Will collaborate on Web3 investment opportunities
Mclaren On Mobile
McLaren 765LT races into New State in latest collaboration update
Skins available in Troi and Erangel
Indian Esports
Indian esports and game streaming platform Loco raises $42 million
Backed by PUBG Mobile developer Krafton
New State X Nier
Krafton and Square Enix partner for PUBG New State and NieR collab
Will bring Nier Automata event back to Nier Reincanation
Studio Shares
Krafton acquires Smash Legends dev 5minlab for $19.9 million
100 per cent of shares acquired
The Might Of Mobile
PUBG Mobile boosts Krafton’s 2021 revenues to record-highs of $1.57 billion
Release of Battlegrounds Mobile India and PUBG New State boosted Q4 sales
Equity Investments
Krafton invests $6.6 million to create and sell NFT avatars
Partnering with South Korea auction platform Seoul Auction Blue
At It Again
Krafton sues Garena, Apple, and Google over Free Fire copyright infringement
Demands the app be removed and damages paid
Cheaters Come A Cropper
PUBG Mobile hackers to pay $10 million to Tencent and Krafton
Will be used to fund anti-cheat tech
Electric Hypercar
Krafton partners with Bugatti Rimac to bring Rimac Nevera to New State
First big collaboration for Krafton's latest entry
New State Numbers
PUBG: New State made $2.6 million in its first week
Downloaded over 40 million times
Taking Over
PUBG: New State surpasses 20 million downloads in 5 days
Number one mobile game in over 160 countries
Fantastic Fifth
20% of global game downloads come from India
Battlegrounds Mobile India soars to success during Q3 2021
Back Again
Honor of Kings snatches back first place for October worldwide revenue, reaching $329 million
Global player spending reaches $7.5 billion
Heir Apparent
PUBG: New State will launch worldwide on November 11
Has surpassed 50 million pre-registrations
Eagerly Awaiting
PUBG: New State surpasses 40 million pre-registrations
Recently made available for pre-registration in PUBG-crazy India
Best Of 2021
The Top 50 Mobile Game Makers of 2021
The movers, the shakers, and all those funky moneymakers
Three Months
PUBG Mobile and Garena Free Fire set to receive ban in Bangladesh
TikTok also part of High Court ruling
Krafton Crumbles
Krafton shares fall by 20% following IPO debut
The decline is the worst seen in South Korea since 2004