Sign up for a new account or log in here:
Speaking with Computer and Video Games about the state PC game distriubtion, Darryl Still of 1C, a Russian developer and publisher, claimed that some UK retailers refuse to sell Steamworks titles. According to Still, certain big-box stores have warned publishers that they won't stock games with Steam integration, such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Fallout: New Vegas.
Still's comment all but confirms a report by MCVUK last November that claimed "key" retailers were blacklisting Steam games to stifle competition. Not only are retailers bothered by online game sales cutting into physical sales, but they're also concerned about Steam's overwhelming grip on digital distribution because they're hoping to enter the digital market too.
"If we have a digital service, then I don't want to start selling a rival in-store," said a major UK games retailer. "Steam has made it so easy for everyone and they have lots of users. But how long do you wait before you take control of your own digital strategy? Like with iTunes, at some point it's going to be too late," said David Perry, CEO of cloud-based gaming service Gaikai.
CVG's interview shed some light on the difference between selling games via retail and digital outfits from a publisher's perspective. According to Still, if 1C sold a £20 game via retail, the company would make £7 per unit, whereas that figure doubles to £14 when peddled through stores like Steam. What's more, 1C would receive that money three or fourth months faster.
Along with raking in twice as much cash per copy, Still noted that the digital medium has other lucrative advantages over retail stores. For instance, you know those mega-discounts that seduce us every Christmas with $5 AAA titles? Cheap games obviously boost sales throughout the promotion, but they also stimulate full price digital and physical sales after the deal ends.
When the game returns to its normal price, "it does so with an uplift in full price sales both on Steam and at the retail stores…because there is usually a whole new base of consumers playing and enthusing about the game on the forums. This phenomenon contrasts completely with retail, where once a game is discounted, it is heading to the dump bins and then out the door."
Despite its dominance over the digial market, Still said Valve isn't controlling. "Because they come from a developer background their aims mesh perfectly with ours, which is principally to get our games into the hands of as many users as possible." "They work closely with us to make sure that the price and promotions we set maximizes the interest and revenue available."
User Comments: 33
Got something to say? Post a comment-
tehbanz said:
wcbert said:My biggest fear in the future Steam will do away with the one time purchase of a games and make me rent the games, each month I have to a pay a fee.
I don't think we'll have to worry about that, however my biggest fear is the day steam goes belly-up how will we re-acquire our games? People always ***** about physical copies etc "you can scratch them" well you can also back them up! create .iso's and or burn them to other media.
I love steam, i love how it's all integrated, I love that i can see a friend playing l4d right click his name and be in the game in minutes, but all big companies come to an end at some point.
it will be interesting to see where the future will take us.
-
tehbanz said:wcbert said:
My biggest fear in the future Steam will do away with the one time purchase of a games and make me rent the games, each month I have to a pay a fee.
I don't think we'll have to worry about that, however my biggest fear is the day steam goes belly-up how will we re-acquire our games? People always ***** about physical copies etc "you can scratch them" well you can also back them up! create .iso's and or burn them to other media.
I love steam, i love how it's all integrated, I love that i can see a friend playing l4d right click his name and be in the game in minutes, but all big companies come to an end at some point.
it will be interesting to see where the future will take us.
Well since I already have the games on my hard drive, it's just about backing them up.
-
Zilpha said:
ramonsterns said:Guest said:Steam can be a pain even on a good Internet connection.
I'm not a console fanboy but popping in the disc and being able to play straight away is a bonus.
Steam / DRM / whatever is a monster created by pirating PC masses.
Steam has never been a pain for me other than on days when a popular game is released and their servers get overloaded.
Also, stating not to be a console fanboy, then admitting lacking the attention span necessary to install a game doesn't help you in the least.
I've been using Steam since 2008 and I don't even mind it anymore. I just run the game from the icon on my desktop and it's like it was never there.
I love the comment about steam being created by the pirating masses - if anything it has lowered the amount of pirating done. A company looked at the trend and though, "well hells bells, folks sure do like their digital downloads of content, let's make it legal and see how much of that thar moolah we can make!"
Now people can get their digital downloads fast, easy, safe, and cheap. You can't beat that. I have bought a number of games on Steam and while I am not much of a PC gamer either, I appreciate having a decent selection on my lappy when I travel and can't really drag an x-box and TV around with me.
-
treetops said:
I don't like having to go through steam to play multiplayer on some of my games. It runs in the background and takes up a lot of resources for being a game downloader launcher.
-
I don't use steam anyway. I don't understand why people buy from steam or origin..
Convenience is a major factor. As is the ability to have a centralised, always accessible place online to download your games wherever you are.
For some not having manuals, discs (that get damaged and then are useless) and boxes for games hanging around is a bonus as well!
I also like having all my games accessible from one menu, and having my gaming buddies available inside Steam, alongside my games.
The mear fact I can download my game anytime I want, not worry about a damaged disc meaning the game is useless, and not have to worry about losing CD keys is a good enough reason for me to use it.
-
Guest said:
@howzz1854: To get to the Offline Mode you need to first be online. Then if you restart your computer or simply close Steam you will need to go back online to sign into Steam to then go to Offline Mode once again...
incorrect.
i was just on a road trip with my laptop with all my steam games running off-line on trains, airplanes and never needed to be online to play the games. like others said, once you downloaded and installed the game. you don't need to be online to play the games you have.
-
retial shops only have themselves to blame , bit silly to try and blame there downfall on steam . And as others have said it makes no sense to then not sell a game so you will definetly buy it online. I assume they started this as some kind of empty threat hoping publishers would drop steam in favour of retail . Of course they are dreaming and i guess they will find that out very quickly.
The retail sectors lack of effort and promotion and knowledge of PC games is what killed it for retail . Theres the odd shop were there's a guy working in there who knows his stuff but on most occasions i would go in and ask would they be selling WOW data disk and they would say " whats warcraft?" .
My brother works for a very large internatioal retailer thats sells games , they didnt stock WOW , when he phoned up head office they said " never heard of it" . Thats retails problem . They have someone in charge of ordering games who has never heard of warcraft or valve.
-
I have been with Steam for seven years now and have a massive number of games (over 1000) with their service. I still buy physical copies of games for my PS3 and Wii but not for PC games. Retailers with this point of view are just damaging the industry. It should not be about competition, it should be about expansion. Get games into the hands of as many players as possible and get the developers their hard earned money so they can develop new games.
Steam is one of the giants of the DD industry and now that Direct2Drive is gone there is nothing that directly competes with it not even Origin or Impulse (aka Game Stop's app). Valve could easily monopolize the industry but they have not done so yet so fears like the ones posted in the article are unfounded BS imo by a business who wants an excuse to complain about their crappy retail sales.
Most Popular
| Trending | Featured |
-
Xbox One: Entertainment hub first, gaming console second - but can it disrupt TV?
-
Metro: Last Light Tested, Benchmarked
-
Microsoft officially announces Xbox One: here's what we know so far
-
'Supercapacitor' could fully charge your phone in less than 30 seconds
-
Sony releases PS4 teaser video on eve of Xbox 720 reveal
Featured on Keyboards
Subscribe to TechSpot
Get free exclusive content, learn about new features and breaking tech news.