Do we actually 'own' our Steam games ?

TheVoice · 24 Dec 2012 at 12:16

jonneymendoza said:
Lots of other big companies have gone BUST so dont be surpised if Steam does.

It's the way those other big companies have been doing business that has got them where they are. Plenty of others are thriving, Valve is no different.

yhack · 24 Dec 2012 at 12:32

Gabe is a billionaire, I don't see them going bankrupt any time soon.

Utnac · 24 Dec 2012 at 12:42

According to Valve no we don't, but since no one has ever taken them to court over it, the real answer is no one knows.

carlazai · 24 Dec 2012 at 12:46

This is an area that will gain some consumer protection very soon, likely from everyones favourite institution. It is unacceptable to have a catalogue worth £100's if not £1000's that you do not own. Apple, Amazon and Steam will moan but the EU will force the situation.

wnb · 24 Dec 2012 at 12:46

yhack said:
Gabe is a billionaire, I don't see them going bankrupt any time soon.

While Steam may continue being strong under Gabes leadership. Who is to say he wont sell out? Perhaps to EA!!! I am sure EA would want to get their grubby mitts on Steam.

SiDeards73 · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:02

If EA bought Steam, then steam going bankrupt would be a possibility

I can see hordes of people uninstalling it or trying to get their games away from it haha.

Doesnt EA have some part in Origin?

Utnac · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:07

SiDeards73 said:
If EA bought Steam, then steam going bankrupt would be a possibility I can see hordes of people uninstalling it or trying to get their games away from it haha.

Doesnt EA have some part in Origin?

Origin IS EA.

Strife212 · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:13

If you read the steam terms and conditions what you're actually buying is a subscription that they can revoke at any time :eek:

Steam and your Subscription(s) require the automatic download and installation of Software onto your computer. Valve hereby grants, and you accept, a limited, terminable, non-exclusive license and right to use the Software for your personal use in accordance with this Agreement, including the Subscription Terms. The Software is licensed, not sold. Your license confers no title or ownership in the Software. To make use of the Software, you must have a Steam Account and you may be required to be running the Steam client and maintaining a connection to the Internet.

Martini1991 · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:21

No we don't.

snips86x · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:25

So what happens if you purchase a retail copy from a supermarket, games store, amazon or from another website, do we not own it then?

Teaf · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:28

snips86x said:
So what happens if you purchase a retail copy from a supermarket, games store, amazon or from another website, do we not own it then?

Nope

snips86x · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:34

flibby said:
Nope

What a con.....

p_r_i_m_e · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:36

you own the media and a licence to use the code, not the software itself. So if it needs their servers to activate or run your still stuffed if they go bust

[TW]Fox · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:38

neoglow said:
Lets say (hypothetically) Valve go bust one day and Steam closes (lets hope not).

What would happen to our library of games?

You lose everything.

Good isn't it? Plus it costs more than buying physical media, too. Go Steam!

[TW]Fox · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:40

flibby said:
Nope

But in practice it doesnt matter because, titles with activation aside, once you get into your house with your physical media the entire internet could explode, the company could go bust and everyone on the planet but you could die and you'd still be able to play it. The fact it isnt 'yours' is just a technicality rather than a very real issue in the way Steam is.

snips86x · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:47

[TW]Fox;23425240 said:
But in practice it doesnt matter because, titles with activation aside, once you get into your house with your physical media the entire internet could explode, the company could go bust and everyone on the planet but you could die and you'd still be able to play it. The fact it isnt 'yours' is just a technicality rather than a very real issue in the way Steam is.

Steam in offline mode

Can still play then, providing it's not online.

sniffy · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:51

If Steam vanishes we're all screwed. Valve would have to slowly lose their stranglehold on the PC gaming market for them not to be in a position to be bought out in the event they somehow ran out of money. However at the moment they've got a license to print money (Gabe is up there with the richest) so the chances of that happening just seem so slim.

Rroff · 24 Dec 2012 at 13:51

Tunney said:
I'd disagree with that. I once got Medieval: Total War in a Steam sale for £1.49. It was a 12GB download. Servers and bandwidth costs money and I don't see how Steam turned a profit on that sale.

Valve/Steam probably pay a bit more for their hosting but to put it into perspective my servers are on a pretty good host and unlimited 100Mbit is under £200/m and if I was paying overage then 12GB would cost pence. (this is a good quality host with multiple 10Gig connections and you actually see full throughput on a 100Mbit NIC 99% of the time).

Sadly there are still people who pay incredible amounts of money for "professional" hosting and 20-30GB would cost them £10s or even £100 :|

yhack · 24 Dec 2012 at 14:39

I pay $7 per month for a VPS with 1000GB bandwidth on 100Mbit

They are easily making profit.

Omaeka · 24 Dec 2012 at 14:52

People are speaking as though Valve will go bust any time soon (such as 'install all your games just in case') lol. People also claim Gabe will sell out to EA, when Valve make him more money in a year than what he'd ever get paid for his company. Yep, this has the makings of a mindblowing thread.