Steam Subscriber Agreement update disallows class action lawsuits

Valve has updated Steam's Subscriber Agreement to disallow class action lawsuits.

Valve has updated the Steam Subscriber Agreement to include a clause barring members from filing class action lawsuits.

"We considered this change very carefully," said Valve in a post on its official blog. "It's clear to us that in some situations, class actions have real benefits to customers. In far too many cases however, class actions don't provide any real benefit to users and instead impose unnecessary expense and delay, and are often designed to benefit the class action lawyers who craft and litigate these claims. Class actions like these do not benefit us or our communities."

Steam users can now only file individual claims, not group ones. Valve has promised these individual disputes will be addressed through arbitration or small claims court where the normal customer service process fails. "Reimbursement by Valve is provided regardless of the arbitrator's decision, provided that the arbitrator does not determine the claim to be frivolous or the costs unreasonable," says Valve.

The new terms of service also include small changes to Steam trading and the Steam Wallet "to accommodate new features and capabilities."