Valve Faces UK Steam Lawsuit Over Alleged Overcharging (Full Transcript)

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: Millions of UK gamers could be in line to get compensation if a lawsuit accusing Valve of overcharging for Steam games is successful. The gaming giant is being accused of abusing its market dominance by imposing restrictive terms on game publishers and locking players into using Steam. Legal action was brought by digital rights campaigner Vicky Shotbolt in 2024 on behalf of up to 14 million Steam users across the UK, who could be in line for compensation if she wins. And it could set Valve Corporation back £656 million. Valve, which has been contacted for comment, had argued the case could not be certified to proceed towards a trial. The lawsuit alleges Valve forces game publishers to sign up to conditions which stops them from selling their games earlier or for less on rival platforms. It claims that as Valve requires users to buy all additional content through Steam, if they've bought the initial game through the platform, it's essentially locking in users to continue making purchases there. A separate consumer action case filed in August 2024 has been brought against Valve in the US.