Bad news for players who were hoping to be able to resell their digital games purchased on platforms like the App Store, Steam or the PlayStation Store. After a long legal battle lasting almost 10 years, the Court of Cassation ruled in favor of Valve, owner of Steam, by confirming the ban on the resale of digital video games. A decision which marks the end of hopes of one day seeing the emergence of a second-hand market for dematerialized cultural goods, like what exists for traditional physical media such as books or CDs.
A hard blow for the players and the UFC-Que Choisir
In a highly anticipated ruling, the Court of Cassation put an end to nearly 10 years of legal battle between the consumer association UFC-Que Choisir and the video game platform Steam. The magistrates considered that dematerialized games could not benefit from the right of resale granted to physical goods such as books or CDs.
Concretely, this means that when you buy a video game in digital version, whether on Steam, the PlayStation Store or Xbox Live for example, you will not be able to resell it used as you would with a cartridge or disc. . UFC-Que Choisir hoped to promote a 2009 European directive which authorizes the resale of intangible software.
But for the Court, a video game is more than just a computer program. It is a “complex work” with graphics, music, a scenario… This distinguishes it from classic software which wears out until it becomes obsolete. A game can be replayed by new players years later. Allowing a second-hand digital market could therefore affect sales of new games, according to the magistrates. Steam, which now clearly displays that you are purchasing a user license and not a game, has therefore won its case.
Apple and other publishers relieved
This decision is a victory for Steam but also for the main players in video games like Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo who were opposed to the creation of a dematerialized second-hand market. This allows them to maintain full control over the distribution of their games.
Apple can also welcome this judgment, even if it does not directly concern the App Store. The Cupertino company is fiercely opposed to the idea of a secondary market for apps, which could reduce its revenues. With mobile games representing a growing share of the market, Apple has every interest in ensuring that the resale right does not apply to dematerialized games.
In the end, it is the players who are the big losers. As video games shift more and more towards all-digital, including on consoles, they will not be able to resell their completed games to buy new ones. A hard blow for purchasing power in a context of inflation in game prices. UFC-Que Choisir has expressed its disappointment and does not rule out new actions in the future to defend the rights of consumers of digital cultural goods.
