Steam-owner Valve taken to court by ACCC over alleged violations

AN AMERICAN company has been accused of violating Australian consumers’ rights. And now it’s being taken to court.

A POPULAR gaming service Steam, owned by Valve, may have broken Australian law when it refused customers refunds they were entitled to.

After being contacted my several customers, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has initiated legal action against Valve. Valve’s main product, Steam, is one of the most popular ways for Australian gamers to download content. It’s like iTunes, but for PC games.

The consumer watchdog has accused Valve of telling customers they are not entitled to refunds under any circumstances. Valve has also allegedly told customers that it did not have to repair or replace or give a refund on a game when the customer didn’t take it up directly with the game developer.

The ACCC also alleged Valve told customers it was not subject to local consumer guarantees under the law.

A directions hearing has been set in the Federal Court on October 7.

ACCC chairman Rod Sims said: “The Australian Consumer Law applies to any business providing goods or services within Australia. Valve may be an American-based company with no physical presence in Australia, but it is carrying on business in Australia by selling to Australian consumers, who are protected by Australian Consumer Law.

“It is a breach of the Australian Consumer Law for businesses to state that they do not give refunds under any circumstances, including for gifts and during sales. Under the Australian Consumer Law, consumers can insist on a refund or replacement at their option if a product has a major fault.

“The consumer guarantees provided under the Australian Consumer Law cannot be excluded, restricted or modified.”

Valve chief executive Doug Lombardi told news.com.au in an email: “We are making every effort to cooperate with the Australian officials on this matter, while continuing to provide Steam services to our customers across the world, including Australian gamers.

He did not respond to more detailed questions put forward by news.com.au.

Valve has 65 million users worldwide.