Valve has updated the store steamwhich now clearly warns you at the time of checkout that the product you are purchasing is Granting a license to the game And service and Not the product itself. A concept that is already clear to many users, but not all. We specify: Steam’s policies have not changed, and the platform is now obligated to clearly communicate this information.
When you add games to your cart and proceed to checkout, you’ll see a box on the right (find an example in the image below), which reads: “Purchase a digital product Grants a license to the product on Steam“, with an attached link to the Steam Subscription Agreement, where it is explained that “Contents and services are licensed, not sold. Licensing It does not transfer to the subscriber any address or ownership for contents and services.
Soon, other stores will also have to adapt
The reason for this update is a law recently passed by the state of California that aims to protect consumers and against misleading advertising and which requires digital stores to clearly indicate that contents purchased from a digital store are only a license to use. This applies not only to video games, but also to music, movies, TV series, and e-books.
Valve moved forward a few months, knowing that the law would go into effect on January 1, 2025. As a result, soon Also other digital stores Companies like the PlayStation Store, eShop, Xbox Store, and Epic Games Store will have to provide similar notices specifying the non-existence of what you purchase and the limited rights you have through the granted license.
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