A ruling by a UK competition court has opened a new chapter in the debate over PC game pricing on Steam. Valve, the company behind Steam, must now face a collective lawsuit that considers prices on the digital store to be unfair to consumers. According to BBC, The case is still ongoing and has yet to decide who is right, but this move puts the issue of platform commissions and game distribution rules back in the spotlight.
Tribunal decision and claim setting
The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) in London has given the green light for a collective lawsuit against Valve to go ahead. The suit is worth around £656 million and was brought by Vicki Shotbolt on behalf of up to 14 million Steam users in the UK. The group includes people who purchased games or additional content since 2018.
Valve previously argued the case was not worthy of being certified for trial. The Tribunal deemed the case worthy enough to proceed to the next stage. This means that the trial still needs to examine evidence and arguments from both parties.
Steam is considered too dominant in the market
The main allegations target the way Steam establishes relationships with publishers and how users transact in its ecosystem. The lawsuit argues that Valve has used Steam's dominance to impose conditions that allegedly restrict publishers, including an alleged ban on selling games cheaper or faster on competing platforms.
If this practice is proven, it could reduce the competitive space between digital stores. Consumers will ultimately have fewer choices, while game prices are unlikely to drop as the price difference between platforms becomes smaller.
Lock-in and commission issues up to 30%
The lawsuit also highlights the lock-in effect. The logic is simple: when someone purchases a base game on Steam, the purchase of additional content or DLC is considered to be more “tied” to Steam as well. This mechanism is said to make users continue to shop at the same place despite alternatives.
These conditions are associated with commissions that are said to reach 30%. The plaintiff argued that this commission was excessive and contributed to higher prices for UK consumers, both for games and add-on content.
Valve is going up against
The next stage will focus on evidence: how dominant Steam is in the relevant market, whether there are rules that actually inhibit lower prices elsewhere, as well as how consumer harm is calculated collectively. Valve could also raise the defense that the platform's commissions and rules are necessary for service, security, and distribution.
The end result could range from a court ruling to an out-of-court settlement. Either way, this case has the potential to affect the way digital game stores set prices, work with publishers, and the game buying experience in the future.
