Valve Says It Will Now Allow Everything on Steam Unless It's Illegal or "Straight-up Trolling"

[VAMatt]

Bofferbrauer2 said:

VAMatt said:
I think they have to do this. And, I doubt that it has very much to do with offencive content. It's probably really about IP theft.

If Valve claims that they are controlling what content can and cannot go up in their Marketplace, then IP Theft games make it through, they have likely opened themselves up to some liability in that regard. Or, at least, one could argue that way in court. But, if they claim that they are not moderating the content, then they have at least some grounds to argue in that same court that they simply operate a Marketplace, and are not responsible for what people sell there.

That's not how it works, Valve is liable for anything illegal that can be bought on their store.

It is not that black and white.  If you want to get an accurate picture of how confusing it is, research the legal challenges Ebay has dealt with due to the sale of counterfeit goods on their marketplace.  Youtube has also been involved in tons of this stuff.  There are countless companies over the last couple of decades, and countless routes those companies have taken to avoid liability.  Arguing that they simply provide a marketplace is one of the most common arguments these companies make.