Retailers Unhappy With Steam Monopoly

[nub]

I have to agree, they're complaining even though it's their fault to begin with. Threatening to cease selling games that are available on Steam won't have any effects. Even if these retailers are trying to get publishers to take their games off of Steam, the publishers would have an equal loss of sales, maybe even worse.

Steam makes buying games super convenient when compared to buying retail, and you don't have to pay tax (at least not in the US). It may or may not be as convenient for people in Europe but I'm not certain. Don't they have a 1 USD = 1 Euro policy or some crap like that, so a 50 dollar game would cost 50 euros? Or maybe it was British Pounds...whatever...

Anyway, I don't think anything is gonna happen. They might just be trying to pressure publishers in to reconsidering using Steam for distribution, but that seems like a pointless goal to begin with.

[Ark11]

All of those competing companies are big babies! They are so stupid, they are banning games that are sold on Steam which makes getting those games only possible through the use of Steam making more people use it. There stupid plan is bound to backfire!

[joe_rogers_11155]

Do you think they will bitch and boycott when Portal 2 and Ep3 come out with STEAM BUILT RIGHT IN???


Talk about a monopoly!! OMG i hatez steam too guyss!!

[kkirspel]

I think the comments are better reads than the actual article

This ^
I'm glad to see there is so much support for Steam; I'm a PC only gamer and Steam is my lifeline to the gaming world.

That being said, I can maybe see what the retailers are doing by banning Steam: how many of you guys got into using Steam after buying a retail copy of a game? For me it was Half-Life2 and I've been digital download ever since. I guess I'm saying retail is trying to prevent Steam from gathering more users, though at this point the Steam user-base has grown too large and retail's shelve space for PC games has become too small, for this move to be effective.

I can see how pissed retail is a Steam, for increasing Steam's amount of users and them getting blown away by Steam itself, but if they weren't so inflexible and encumbered in old business practices, maybe they wouldn't have let Steam springboard off them in the first place.

[Saxon]

Well this seems like they're shooting themselves in the foot - even if I buy a game from a retail store I prefer it to have Steam support since Steam does all the updating and patching automatically. Having to manually download patch files is a huge chore (whats more it usually results in servers running different versions of a game, which is a pain).

If you're going to stop people from buying a superior version of a game, then you're going to lose business plain and simple. Besides, what does it matter if a game has steam support? Someone is actually going into your store and buying it from you not through Valve... urgh... with businessmen this stupid it's no wonder we're in a depression.

[Enraged]

The sheer stupidity of all this makes me want to laugh out loud. They're complaining that Valve has a monopoly now with 80% control? How about before, when digital distribution was only an idea for the future, and the only way to buy games was from the retailer. I'm pretty sure they enjoyed a much higher number than 80%.

Second, the reason Valve have such control is because they offer a good service which actually benefits those who use it.
Thirdly, this sounds exactly like complaints made in about just any industry when a new, strong competitor emerges. Usually the next step is the now weaker side will cry, bawl and spend loads of money getting government to regulate the industry to ensure they keep control of the top spot. After that they then wonder where all their money has gone and usually blame the consumer. Let's hope this doesn't happen, both in the US, UK or any other country.

[BaRRaKID]

The thing that bothers me most about steam is that when the Euro was worth less than the Dollar, a game would cost more euros than dollars, but now that the Euro is worth more, a game that costs $60 also costs €60. I find this discriminative. We would be paying $30 more than an American.

Well retail stores aren't any better. At least here in Portugal games are becoming fking expensive, I just saw Black Ops on sale for €69.99, and it's selling for €59.99 on Steam, so even with all the €=$ thing, steam still wins when comparing to a retail store.

[MNM]

Well retail stores aren't any better. At least here in Portugal games are becoming fking expensive, I just saw Black Ops on sale for €69.99, and it's selling for €59.99 on Steam, so even with all the €=$ thing, steam still wins when comparing to a retail store.

On sale Full price?

[Preamp]

Sounds like they are done with the witch-hunt on piracy and just need a new target to blame for not making enough money.

Retail Comp Co. - We're not making enough money on our retail sale.. what can we blame for this ?

Random employee - My son uses this thing called Steam.. To buy games in digital download form

Retail Comp Co. - YES! Lets boycott them, sue there asses off and then make people buy our crappy games at twice the price * Evil Manic Laughter*


I love steam its brilliant and i often bought things for sale on there that i wouldent by in a retail store.
But i still like having a physical copy of the game.

Even tho Game prices tend to be higher on physical then on steam (most of the time).

[Mr. Happy]

hilarious! Funny when they say "the power is with the retailers," when Valve built their empire on the opposite principle, the power is with the customers. The customers will choose steam, and the retailers will simply lose!

[TwiggyTwink]

It is a big monopoly, but they got there by seizing the moment and providing a service that is otherwise not provided. If they want to lose sales and stop selling those games, they can, but it won't do them any good. If someone wants to break the monopoly steam holds, they have to create a better, free'er service. They won't accomplish that by moaning that someone else was faster and better.

! ! ! ! !

[Juice]

sorry but... if the games that are on steam won't be available retail.. won't that mean they will loose even more money and everyone will start buying it on steam

Not excellently, this means that the distributors are forced to choose between releasing their products on either steam or in retail stores. And by having retail store "exclusive" games, they force you to purchase them there instead of on steam.

[AcapulcoGold20]

They did it to themselves to be quite honest. Retailers began neglecting PC Gaming years ago. They deemed it just not profitable enough to keep games in stock and a wide selection. Steam came in and made it super easy for PC gamers to get all their old favorite games or the ones they may have missed at release, and they could get them cheap and easy. Suck on it retailers. I can only hope digital distribution makes companies like Activision extinct next.

[cheesemoo0]

This seems kind of a "No shit" article. How could competitors not be upset that Steam is steamrolling (hehe) them?

Obvious statement is obvious.

[.treeturtle--]

Imagine going to Bestbuy and buying a tv. But this isn't just any tv, this tv is special. Every time you turn this tv on an advertisement for another Electronics store plays telling you why you to buy from them and why you shouldn't buy from Bestbuy.

Would it be even remotely logical for Bestbuy to continue selling this tv? Hell No.

Don't get me wrong I love steam to death, but retail's argument really does make since and the move would be pretty fair IMO.
I don't think it would be an effective action to take, and would just make them look like douches, but it's definitely reasonable for them to ban steam games. in theory