{"id":1968069,"date":"2026-06-02T12:46:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T09:46:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1968069"},"modified":"2026-06-02T12:46:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T09:46:36","slug":"valve-antitrust-lawsuit-reportedly-reveals-lengths-steam-owner-is-willing-to-go-to-prevent-cheaper-prices-elsewhere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1968069","title":{"rendered":"Valve antitrust lawsuit reportedly reveals lengths Steam owner is willing to go to prevent cheaper prices elsewhere"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">Valve antitrust lawsuit reportedly reveals lengths Steam owner is willing to go to prevent cheaper prices elsewhere<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Even the big publishers supposedly aren&#8217;t safe.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/steam_share_image.jpg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Steam logo superimposed over official artwork for various games.\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"steam_share_image.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"321\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Valve<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sherif Saed avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/IMG_1950_Uy1XomJ.JPG?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1638\" height=\"1346\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Sherif Saed avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"IMG_1950_Uy1XomJ.JPG\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1638\" height=\"1346\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/sherif-saed\">Sherif Saed<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Contributor<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-06-02T12:46:36+00:00\">June 2, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/valve-antitrust-lawsuits-ubisoft-warner-bros-report?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          15 comments<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"144d870c-5c41-4999-babb-8999fdd4bcf3\" data-name=\"Middle-earth: Shadow of War\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Middle-Earth: Shadow of War\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Middle-Earth: Shadow of War\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Middle-Earth: Shadow of War\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Middle-Earth: Shadow of War\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Middle-Earth: Shadow of War\" title=\"Follow Middle-Earth: Shadow of War\"><br \/>\n  Follow Middle-Earth: Shadow of War<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Steam is once again under fire. A new antitrust lawsuit has accused platform owner Valve of abusing its dominant position in the PC marketplace by aggressively pursuing developers &#8211; including major players like Ubisoft and Warner Bros. &#8211; who fail to maintain price parity across digital storefronts.<\/p>\n<p>Valve is currently facing a lawsuit brought on by a group of independent developers accusing it of impeding competition in the PC marketplace. Emails filed as part of the case, uncovered by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/features\/2026-06-01\/valve-s-antitrust-reckoning-over-steam-has-echoes-of-apple-google-app-store-sui\">Bloomberg<\/a>, allege how far Valve was willing to go to prevent developers who sell their games on Steam from offering better deals elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p>Bloomberg cites two high-profile cases referenced in the ongoing lawsuit, one involving Ubisoft, and another Warner Bros. Based on employee testimony, and other records uncovered in the discovery phase, Valve allegedly threatened to delist all editions of Rainbow Six Siege after Ubisoft offered a cheaper option on its Uplay store.<\/p>\n<p>Uplay featured a $15 USD Rainbow Six Siege Starter Pack, but this version was not available on Steam, making the cheapest option on Valve&#8217;s platform much more expensive. It&#8217;s claimed Valve insisted Ubisoft swiftly remedy the discrepancy, giving the publisher &#8220;until the end of day tomorrow&#8221; to change that.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/rainbow-six-siege-season-pass-detailed-1447357883941.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.499074074074074\" width=\"1619\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"rainbow-six-siege-season-pass-detailed-1447357883941.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.499074074074074\" width=\"1619\"><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>In the second instance, Warner Bros. found itself in a similar situation. In 2017, as the publisher was preparing to launch <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/middle-earth-shadow-of-war\">Middle-earth: Shadow of War<\/a>, the company was allegedly informed by Valve that pre-orders for the game had been removed from Steam.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Valve&#8217;s reasoning was that the price was \u201csignificantly higher than what was available at other retailers for the same version of the game.\u201d David Haddad, president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, allegedly tried to resolve the situation directly with Valve so as not to face its ire.<\/p>\n<p>During the ongoing lawsuit, Kassidy Gerber, a member of Valve&#8217;s business development team, is said to have denied the company had a policy about price parity, even after being presented with a quote she apparently gave to one of the developers who brought on the lawsuit.<\/p>\n<p>Valve is no stranger to legal action, of course. The company <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/new-lawsuit-accuses-valve-of-abusing-steam-market-power-to-prevent-price-competition\">has been sued before for allegedly abusing its powers to maintain its market lead<\/a>, and this isn&#8217;t the first time it&#8217;s been accused of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/valve-being-sued-for-656m-in-uk-amid-accusations-of-market-rigging-through-steam\">demanding price parity with other competing stores<\/a>. Today&#8217;s report also follows <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/really-big-problem-specialist-lawyer-new-york-suing-valve-counter-strike-2-dota-2-loot-boxes\">a recent lawsuit filed against Valve in New York over its Counter-Strike 2 loot boxes<\/a>, alleging they constitute illegal gambling.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Steam is once again under fire. A new antitrust lawsuit has accused platform owner Valve of abusing its dominant position in the PC marketplace by aggressively pursuing developers &#8211; including major players like Ubisoft and Warner Bros. &#8211; who fail to maintain price parity across digital storefronts.<\/p>\n<p>Valve is currently facing a lawsuit brought on by a group of independent developers accusing it of impeding competition in the PC marketplace. Emails filed as part of the case, uncovered by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/features\/2026-06-01\/valve-s-antitrust-reckoning-over-steam-has-echoes-of-apple-google-app-store-sui\">Bloomberg<\/a>, allege how far Valve was willing to go to prevent developers who sell their games on Steam from offering better deals elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p>Bloomberg cites two high-profile cases referenced in the ongoing lawsuit, one involving Ubisoft, and another Warner Bros. Based on employee testimony, and other records uncovered in the discovery phase, Valve allegedly threatened to delist all editions of Rainbow Six Siege after Ubisoft offered a cheaper option on its Uplay store.<\/p>\n<p>Uplay featured a $15 USD Rainbow Six Siege Starter Pack, but this version was not available on Steam, making the cheapest option on Valve&#8217;s platform much more expensive. It&#8217;s claimed Valve insisted Ubisoft swiftly remedy the discrepancy, giving the publisher &#8220;until the end of day tomorrow&#8221; to change that.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/rainbow-six-siege-season-pass-detailed-1447357883941.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.499074074074074\" width=\"1619\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"rainbow-six-siege-season-pass-detailed-1447357883941.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.499074074074074\" width=\"1619\"><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>In the second instance, Warner Bros. found itself in a similar situation. In 2017, as the publisher was preparing to launch <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/middle-earth-shadow-of-war\">Middle-earth: Shadow of War<\/a>, the company was allegedly informed by Valve that pre-orders for the game had been removed from Steam.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Valve&#8217;s reasoning was that the price was \u201csignificantly higher than what was available at other retailers for the same version of the game.\u201d David Haddad, president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, allegedly tried to resolve the situation directly with Valve so as not to face its ire.<\/p>\n<p>During the ongoing lawsuit, Kassidy Gerber, a member of Valve&#8217;s business development team, is said to have denied the company had a policy about price parity, even after being presented with a quote she apparently gave to one of the developers who brought on the lawsuit.<\/p>\n<p>Valve is no stranger to legal action, of course. The company <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/new-lawsuit-accuses-valve-of-abusing-steam-market-power-to-prevent-price-competition\">has been sued before for allegedly abusing its powers to maintain its market lead<\/a>, and this isn&#8217;t the first time it&#8217;s been accused of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/valve-being-sued-for-656m-in-uk-amid-accusations-of-market-rigging-through-steam\">demanding price parity with other competing stores<\/a>. Today&#8217;s report also follows <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/really-big-problem-specialist-lawyer-new-york-suing-valve-counter-strike-2-dota-2-loot-boxes\">a recent lawsuit filed against Valve in New York over its Counter-Strike 2 loot boxes<\/a>, alleging they constitute illegal gambling.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News Valve antitrust lawsuit reportedly reveals lengths Steam owner is willing to go to prevent cheaper prices elsewhere Even the big publishers supposedly aren&#8217;t safe. Image credit: Valve News by Sherif Saed Contributor Published on June 2, 2026 15 comments Follow Middle-Earth: Shadow of War Steam is once again under fire. A new antitrust [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-1968069","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1968069","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1968069"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1968069\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1968069"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1968069"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1968069"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}