Valve Corporation, the owner of the popular digital distribution platform Steam, is currently dealing with a major legal challenge in the United Kingdom. A digital rights campaigner named Vicki Shotbolt has filed a collective action claim with the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal, alleging that Valve is involved in market rigging and abusing its dominant position in the PC gaming market.

According to the lawsuit, Valve is imposing price parity clauses on game publishers and developers, preventing them from selling titles at cheaper prices on rival platforms. This, combined with an excessive commission of up to 30 percent, results in inflated prices for consumers. The suit claims that this conduct has led to UK consumers being overcharged for PC games and digital content, with an estimated 14 million individuals affected.

Shotbolt, who is representing the collective action, stated, "Valve is rigging the market and taking advantage of UK gamers. This lawsuit aims to stop this unlawful conduct and help people get back what they are owed." The legal firm handling this case is Milberg London LLP, which has a history of taking on large corporations in antitrust cases, including a successful lawsuit against Sony in 2022.

Though similar claims have been made in the past, such as a California antitrust class action lawsuit filed in 2021, this instance is especially significant due to its potential financial impact and the scale of the alleged market manipulation.

Valve has yet to respond to the allegations, but the company's publicly available documentation does reference price parity in relation to generated Steam Keys. However, critics argue that the lack of transparency regarding Steam's price parity expectations has led to concerns about the platform's market dominance.