In response to the rising tensions at the Indo-China border, the Indian government banned 59 Chinese apps earlier this year in June. The government then issued a second ban to include 47 more apps in July and, earlier this month, released a third order to include 118 more apps. The latest ban included popular battle royale titles PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite, which resulted in a $34billion dip in market value for publisher Tencent. In an attempt to help the game's overall life in India, PUBG Mobile developer PUBG Corp. has now released a statement revoking Tencent Games' publishing rights in the country.

For the unaware, PUBG Corp. is a South Korean gaming company that owns the intellectual property for PUBG and is engaged in publishing and developing the game on multiple platforms like PC, Xbox, and Playstation. Tencent Games, on the other hand, is the Chinese company that develops the game for the mobile platform and is responsible for publishing it in various markets. By revoking Tencent Games' publishing rights for the game in India, PUBG Corp. aims to address some of the Indian government's security concerns and presumably re-release PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite in the country.

In a statement on its website, PUBG Corp. said:

In light of recent developments, 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. As the company explores ways to provide its own PUBG experience for India in the near future, it is committed to doing so by sustaining a localized and healthy gameplay environment for fans.

It's worth noting that the statement only addresses Tencent Games' publishing rights for the PUBG Mobile franchise in India and doesn't shed light on the company's role (or that of its subsidiaries) in the game's development. Both PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite are developed by a Tencent-owned studio based in Shenzhen, China. As of now, it isn't clear whether PUBG Corp. will also take on development responsibilities for the PUBG Mobile franchise in the country. Publishing rights usually center around development financing and marketing and release, and do not necessarily cover the actual game development and coding process, though this could vary by contract.

The statement doesn't include any information about a potential release date.

Source: PUBG