If one trend is clear in gaming, it’s that more and more of us are making our purchases via digital download format than ever before. In fact, some would even go as far as to say that the days of physical media are coming to an end. There is, however, one overriding bonus that owning a physical copy of a game has. Namely, that you will always have the option, if you wish, to resell it.
With digital games, however, once you have purchased it, the game is permanently attached to your account. As such, you will never be able to sell it on once you get bored of it. In a report via GamesIndustry, however, a French court has made a pretty significant ruling in this regard.
The court has ruled that the Steam Digital Library falls under EU laws. As such, people (at least within France) should be able to resell their games if they wish! A pretty strong decision that could change the digital landscape quite significantly!
French Court Rules Steam Games Can Be Resold
The main crux of the legal battle, which has been ongoing for many years now, is that games, be they in physical or digital format, should fall under the EU law. Specifically regarding “the free movement of goods within the Union.”
While Valve is undoubtedly already set to appeal this decision, is it just me or are they perhaps missing out on a huge opportunity here?
What Will Happen Now?
Presumably, Valve will fight this for as long as they possibly can. If the ruling is maintained, however, then this could mark a significant change in at least the European scenery in terms of how users can use their library of games on Steam.
This may not, however, be all bad news for Valve. If this ruling is upheld and spreads across Europe, call me crazy, but would an official 2nd-hand market on Steam really be a bad idea? – I mean, people could sell their games similar to how you already can sell inventory items. Valve takes their cut, you sell a game you don’t play, use that money on your Steam account to buy more games. It sounds like a win-win to me!
This is, of course, all hypothetical. I daresay, however, that this concept has at least occasionally come across Gaben’s mind.
What do you think? Should you be able to resell games in your Steam library? If so, what would be the first you’d list? – Let us know in the comments!
