Allegations of a closed marketplace
At the heart of Valve’s £656 Million Lawsuit is the accusation that the company effectively fenced off its digital marketplace.
Lawyers for Shotbolt allege Valve restricts publishers from offering games at lower prices — or releasing them earlier — on rival platforms. According to the claim, Valve also requires customers who buy a game on Steam to purchase all additional content through the same platform.
Commissions under scrutiny
Those practices, the lawyers argue, “lock in” users and give Valve the power to charge commissions of up to 30%, which they describe as unfair and excessive. The issue of 30% fees has become a flashpoint across the tech and gaming industries, likened by critics to a tollbooth on the only road into a digital city.
Valve previously argued that the case should not be certified to advance, a procedural step required before reaching a full trial. The tribunal disagreed.
Part of a wider legal wave
The ruling places Valve among a growing list of global tech companies facing mass consumer actions in the UK. Similar lawsuits have been approved against Apple over its App Store and Google over its Play Store, both centered on commission rates reaching 30%.
Valve is also battling a separate consumer lawsuit in the United States, filed by gamers in Seattle in August 2024.
As Valve’s £656 Million Lawsuit moves ahead, the case could become a defining test of how far digital platforms can go in controlling prices, publishers and players in the modern gaming economy.
