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In conversation with Ankur Singh, CEO & Founder, Witzeal Technologies
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In conversation with Ankur Singh, CEO & Founder, Witzeal Technologies

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04/01/2022

The Gaming Reporter recently had a conversation with Ankur Singh, CEO & Founder of Witzeal Technologies. The conversation revolved around factors that make the Real Money Gaming (RMG) segment more captive, the gaming categories that will see maximum growth in the coming years and Witzeal’s growth plans in the coming years.

Witzeal is a Gaming technology company incorporated in the year 2016. The gaming company specialises in developing futuristic games in the Real Money Gaming Segment and boasts a wide range of games on its platforms. With an aim to extend its offerings in the Real Money Gaming segment, the company in 2017 launched its flagship product, Big Cash. Big Cash currently offers 17 skill-based games developed in-house in Cards, Fantasy, and Casual Games.

The Gaming Reporter – Witzeal is establishing trends in the Real Money Gaming (RMG) segment with its wide range of in-house games. What are the factors that are responsible for a deeper inclination of gamers towards RMG?

Ankur Singh – In a growing market like India, the term ‘real money gaming’ has many interpretations and is often used as a blanket term. We wish to stress that the games on online gaming platform (particularly on Big Cash) are games of skill and needs to be regulated in the country to nurture the industry for growth. Real money gaming has several factors that make it popular and preferable among gamers due to its variety, user experience and caters to all age groups. Real money gaming significantly focuses on improving the cognitive patterns of consumers which in turn help in fostering mindful skills and enhances the overall behaviour. Apart from this, RMG offers various incentive schemes (such as cashback, referrals and discounts) which are structured after analysing user appeal and interests, leveraging data and algorithms.

The online real money gaming industry has become one of the fastest-growing sectors in India. It has emerged as an important avenue to the gamers due to a multitude of favourable factors such as the ‘Digital India’ initiative by the government of India which promotes internet access to citizens at affordable rates, young and tech-savvy population, growth of the digital ecosystem for payments and overall technological development. Moreover, the growing popularity amongst the youngsters have also made it a valuable career option.

The Gaming Reporter – Witzeal also launched its platform ‘Big Cash’ in the RMG segment. What makes Big Cash unique and sets it apart from its competitors?

Ankur Singh – Our multi-gaming platform “Big Cash” is one of its kind. The platform offers 17 skill-based real money games (RMG) in Cards, Fantasy, and Casual segments, all developed in-house. Besides this, we recently introduced one of its kind, video chat feature for live Indian gamers. The feature allows Indian gamers to interact and participate in games through live video. Now at the Big Cash platform, the players can connect with the opponents or any other players on the app with whom they can create their own private table and can schedule the private game as per their convenience at our platform. Therefore, at Witzeal our overall aim is to specialize in creating and introducing futuristic games and features in the real money gaming (RMG) segment.

The Gaming Reporter – Witzeal currently has roots in many key gaming categories. What are some major categories that you expect to see maximum growth in the coming years?

Ankur Singh – According to a KPMG report, India had the highest game downloads in the casual mobile gaming sub-segment in the world (excluding China) in 2020, with Q1-Q3 2020 downloads standing at 7.3 billion, accounting for 17 per cent of the global mobile game downloads. We believe that there is a key shift in the Indian gaming industry as there is a lot more focus on game development and introducing new games in the market. It’s the casual games, mobile games, fantasy sports and Esports that have emerged as popular gaming segments this year. E-sports has been a growing and emerging sub-segment in the country with close to 10-15 million viewers in India in FY20, which is projected to grow exponentially to 130+ million viewers by FY25 according to the reports. At Witzeal, our Big Cash platforms offer 17 skill-based real money games (RMG) in Cards, Fantasy, and Casual segments, all developed in-house. Hence, we foresee, that in the coming years RMG, Fantasy, and Casual categories will dominate the entire gaming industry of India.

The Gaming Reporter – In the RMG segment, the fear of cyber-crime is what often leads to poor participation by gamers. What initiatives Witzeal is taking to ensure the safety of its players?

Ankur Singh – We at Witzeal, largely focus on providing a wholesome experience to its users ensuring players safety. The seamless KYC of users, instant and safe transactions on the platform make us set apart from our competitors. We are also an active member of the All-India Gaming Federation (AIGF) and follow the self-regulation skill games charter that covers all aspects of the online business process.

The Gaming Reporter – Like brands across other industries, gaming brands are also going local. With respect to participation in the online gaming space, what is the current scenario in Tier-2 & 3 cities in India? How do you plan to expand your reach in these cities?

Ankur Singh – The covid-19 pandemic has been a key catalyst in transforming the online gaming sector in India. Indians became compelled to stay inside their houses which led them to migrate to the digital realm. The surge in internet consumption gave rise to online gaming across states and cities in India, including tier1 and tier 2 cities. According to Sensor Tower’s data, during the first nine months of 2020, India reached the top of mobile game downloads worldwide. In November of the previous year, there were 227 million rural internet users, which is 10 per cent greater than the 205 million users from the metropolitan areas. As internet connectivity improves, data plans become more affordable, and gaming products are more accessible, the appeal of playing online games extends to small towns. Thus, the gaming platforms and apps have observed an increase in rural online gaming.

Our larger gamer population is from tier 2 and tier 3 cities which indicate that the penetration of mobile and internet in smaller cities. We are focused on creating confidence amongst our users in these cities. Also, we have a strong referral scheme and organic growth for our gamers and all these years of our growth on users is only because of the referral and organic growth. Now, we are also focusing our campaigns and branding keeping in mind the vast geography we need to cover to attract more users from these tiers 2 and 3 cities.

The Gaming Reporter – What are some new technologies and infrastructure that Witzeal is planning to invest in to boost player engagement rate?

Ankur Singh – Witzeal has always remained at the forefront of creating milestone innovations especially in the field of gaming technology. Our focus is to provide state-of-the-art gaming experiences, to ensure that users enjoy to the maximum while engaging on our platform. Our recent innovation includes video calling features and community features alongside strengthening our security policies as well as user experience. Moreover, on our platform, the players can create their own Private table and can schedule the private game as per their convenience and play with their friends and family members. Soon, we aim to invest more in such tech innovation modules that will help to create personalized gaming experiences and connect billions of players globally, all speaking the most loved language of gaming.

The Gaming Reporter – What trends can be expected in the RMG segment in the coming years?

Ankur Singh – While the RMG segment of the online gaming industry continues to grow, we believe innovation and personalization of experiences will be the key trends in future that will help to boost the overall gaming industry in India. The adoption of future technologies such as Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality/Mixed Reality (AR/ VR/MR), 360-degree video, and 5G would be another catalyst for this segment to grow in the coming years. The introduction of 5G will drive the gaming industry of India to new heights. It would not only improve the speed of mobile internet, but it will also assist to minimize congestion to a considerable extent.

The Gaming Reporter – Witzeal today boasts over 25 million users and 16 games on its platforms. What are Witzeal’s growth plans for the coming years?

Ankur Singh – 2021 has been a golden year for the gaming community of India. The massive influx in the industry helped us to increase our user base to more than 25M registered users. Due to the tech innovations, we are now witnessing robust growth on our platforms with the gameplay being increased over three folds and reporting four times more user engagement.

Along with the rise in the online gaming industry in India, Witzeal had its breakthrough with the launch of the Big Cash multi-gaming platform in the year 2017. After the introduction of Big Cash, the user base reached approximately 1.6M by 2019. The primary reason for our growth has been the adoption of technology and providing a distinct user experience. We introduced online poker on our platform in 2020 which resulted in the growth of our userbase to more than 25M registered users on the platform. Our live video calling feature also has picked up exponentially as it gives a more personalised experience to the users. The users also get an opportunity to create their own private table and play with family and friends.

With the growth projected of the gaming market, we are focused to double our user base in a year and for this, we are working on continuous improvements on user experience, game variations, contests and other new features which will serve as catalysts for the expected growth. We are placing our investments in reaching out to every gamer to ensure that they are attracted to Big Cash through our referral, marketing and user acquisition strategies.

Read Also : IN CONVERSATION WITH ANISH KAPOOR, CEO, INFINIX MOBILE

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