The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, an independent authority of the Australasian government that is part of their Department of Treasury, has determined that popular video game company Valve is violating Australian law.
ACCC’s authority allows them to determine whether businesses comply with Australia’s consumer law, and they’ve found that Valve’s “no refunds under any circumstances” policy on Steam is a reason to take Valve to court.
The ACCC claims Valve “made false or misleading representations to Australian customers of Steam”, and that “it is a breach of the Australian Consumer Law for businesses to state that they do not give refunds under any circumstances.”
“The Australian Consumer Law applies to any business providing goods or services within Australia,” said ACCC Chairman Rod Sims. “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 the Australian Consumer Law.”
Valve responded with a statement: “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.”
A date for the first hearing is set for October 7th.
Whether the law is overturned or this case forces Valve to reexamine their virtually non-existent return polices is yet to be determined, although there is certainty precedent for this happening with games like Sim City, which did not perform as expected or advertised.
