Spartan Poker, an online poker platform, has laid off 125 people, or 40 percent of its workforce, according to people familiar with the matter, adding to the list of companies impacted by the government’s 28 percent GST on the real-money gaming sector.
This follows the layoffs of 350 employees by esports and skill gaming unicorn Mobile Premier League (MPL) and 55 job cuts by Kavin Bharti Mittal’s Hike, IANS reported.
Spartan Poker, founded in 2014 by Amin Rozani, Sameer Rattonsey, and Peter Abraham, allows users to participate in online poker tournaments in a variety of formats in both the live poker and online poker segments, IANS reported from New Delhi.
Despite suggestions from a handful of states to reconsider, the GST Council decided on August 2 to stick with its initial proposal of levying 28 percent on the full face value of real-money games, without distinguishing between games of skill and chance.
To avoid double taxation, the council offered these businesses some relief by recommending that the GST be levied on the total amount of money deposited by users to play real-money games, rather than on each bet. The council also agreed to revisit the levy six months after it went into effect.