Dev wrote on Aug 1, 2012, 11:29:
Creston wrote on Aug 1, 2012, 11:27:
Also, I'm quite curious as to the level of legality concerning this decision. I would have to agree to this new provision in order to buy new games, but what about my old games? Can they legally say after I've bought 200 games that I can now no longer sue them in a class action lawsuit for any some such reason?
Yes, its a license agreement that's updated (that part that says they can change it at any time) and a supreme court decision says they can stop class actions. See post 79.
Yes, they say they CAN, not that they DO. Important distinction people seem to miss when they jump out windows.
Also, there are times in which this will benefit consumers. Take the accidentally-stealing-$10 case. If a consumer goes after Valve directly via arbitration they will get that $10 back. If a class action lawsuit comes up instead the consumer will be unable to go after Valve directly and would likely end up getting 10% off their next purchase instead. So, in cases like that, it's indeed better for consumers. However, it requires the consumer to do something very specific that few would bother doing (heck, even with class actions consumers rarely bother going to a website and filling out their info for that 10% coupon...)