A class action lawsuit has been filed against Valve alleging that the company “Abuses the market power of the Steam platform”to stop other game distribution platforms such as the Epic Games Store and Microsoft Store from selling cheaper. It happened on Thursday: some five gamers filed class action v. Valve Corporation in California federal court.
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, the lawsuit concerns a clause in the distribution agreement for Steam products, which obliges to sell games on other platforms at no cheaper than on the Steam store.
“Being able to provide consumers with PC games at lower prices is one way a firm or newcomer can gain market share. If this market functioned properly – that is, if the NLR [режим наибольшего благоприятствования в торговле] Steam did not exist and platforms could compete on prices – platforms competing with Steam could provide game developers with the same (or higher) margins while providing lower prices for consumers. “, – the lawsuit says.
In addition to Valve, the lawsuit on the defendants side includes several developers who have signed the Steam Distribution Agreement, including CD Projekt, Ubisoft, kChamp Games, Rust LLC and Devolver Digital.
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The lawsuit seeks to rule that the MFN clause on Steam “Is anti-competitive and constitutes illegal monopolization and maintenance of a monopoly”as well as injunctive relief against further anti-competitive actions, financial damage and legal costs. It is unclear why Ubisoft, CD Projekt, Devolver Digital and several indie studios are co-accused in the lawsuit, but there are no others who have ever agreed to a Steam distribution agreement (and there are countless companies).
It is also not entirely clear how this supposedly anti-competitive clause works in practice, since many games on other sites during sales and other promotions can be found cheaper than on Steam. It probably only applies to the initial cost of the product. In addition, removing this clause from Valve’s agreement will not automatically translate into lower prices at other stores. Even if the Epic Games Store lowers its share of sales, game developers and publishers may simply choose to keep a profit, rather than making the product cheaper for the consumer.
Previously Epic Games Store founder Tim Sweeney has already mocked Valve stands for this Developer Policy.
Steam has veto power over prices, so if a multi-store developer wishes to sell their game for a lower price on the Epic Games store than Steam, then:
1) Valve can simply say “no”
2) Pricing disparity would likely anger Steam users, leading to review bombing, etc— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) January 30, 2019
“Steam has a veto on prices, so if a developer wants to sell their game on the Epic Games store at a lower price than on Steam, then: 1) Valve can simply say no; 2) the mismatch in prices is likely to anger Steam users, leading to bombardment of reviews and the like. “, – he wrote on January 30, 2019.
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