The state of New York in the US is sueing Valve Corporation for promoting gambling in the form of lootboxes in their games and profiting off them on Steam. The case is part of a drive against online gambling, sports betting and prediction market misuse.
The state of New York in the USA has sued Valve Corporation for “illegally promoting gambling through video games popular with children and teenagers”. The case is not aimed directly against Valve’s platform Steam and their digital item sales system, but refers to Valve’s own video games instead with how they drive the monetary ecosystem of Steam through their luck-based item drops. Attorney General Letitia James says: “An investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) found that Valve’s video games, including Counter-Strike 2, Team Fortress 2, and Dota 2, enable gambling by enticing users to pay for the chance to win a rare virtual item of significant monetary value. In Valve’s most popular game, the process resembles a slot machine, with an animated spinning wheel that eventually rests on a selected item. The randomly selected virtual items have no in-game functionality but can be sold online for money, with one item reportedly being sold for more than $1 million. The lawsuit alleges that Valve has made billions of dollars luring its users, many of whom are teenagers or younger, to engage in gambling in the hopes of winning expensive virtual items that they can cash in on. With this lawsuit, Attorney General James seeks to permanently stop Valve from continuing to promote illegal gambling in its games and to pay disgorgement and fines.”
“Illegal gambling can be harmful and lead to serious addiction problems, especially for our young people,” James commented further. “Valve has made billions of dollars by letting children and adults alike illegally gamble for the chance to win valuable virtual prizes. These features are addictive, harmful, and illegal, and my office is suing to stop Valve’s illegal conduct and protect New Yorkers.”
The press release of the General Attorney’s office goes on to explain loot boxes and Steam’s digital economy in more detail for those who are not familiar with it. Crucially, the law case is part of a drive against online gambling, especially around children, following on a warning the General Attorney had sent out against sport betting and prediction markets.
