An Australian Federal Court has ruled against Valve in a legal tussle over the company’s refund policy for Steam games, Kotaku reports.
After 18 months of arguments with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), it has been found that Valve broke the country’s consumer law by not having a refund policy in place when the case began in August 2014 when the ACCC originally sued.
Valve has since implemented a refund policy but Judge Edelman found that Steam users should have always had the option to seek a refund.
Valve argued that it does not officially conduct business in Australia, admitting only that it provides access to an online video games portal through a client. The company said this did not meet the definition of “goods” as defined by Australia’s consumer law. Valve’s defence also noted that its Steam Subscriber Agreement was that of the law of the State of Washington in the United States and not Australian law.
The court disagreed, and found that misleading statements in three versions of the Steam Subscriber Agreement and two version of the Steam Refund Policy had been issued to consumers. Each misleading statement relates to the rights of Australian consumers to a refund if they’ve been sold a defective or faulty product.
The Judge ruled that Valve was conducting business in Australia and was therefore bound by the country’s consumer law.
“The Federal Court’s decision reinforces that foreign-based businesses selling goods and/or services to Australian consumers can be subject to Australian Consumer Law obligations, including the consumer guarantees,” ACCC Chairman Rod Sims commented.
“In this case, Valve is a US company operating mainly outside Australia, but, in making representations to Australian consumers, the Federal Court has found that Valve engaged in conduct in Australia. It is also significant that the Court held that, in any case, based on the facts, Valve was carrying on business in Australia.
“This is also the first time Courts have applied the extended definition of ‘goods’ to include “computer software” in the ACL. It will provide greater certainty where digital goods are supplied to consumers through online platforms.”
“Consumer issues in the online marketplace are a priority for the ACCC and we will continue to take appropriate enforcement action to hold businesses accountable for breaches of the ACL.”
When the ACCC launched its suit in August 2014, it asked Valve for the following:
• Provide an email address that specifically deals with refunds as per Australian Consumer law.
• Provide a 1800 number to help consumers address any refund issues.
• Provide a PO Box address for consumers to deal with refunds.
• Appoint representatives (the ACCC refer to this person as a contact officer) to reply to consumers regarding refunds.
At the time, Valve’s Doug Lombardi said the company was “making every effort to cooperate with the Australian officials on this matter.”
A set amount of liability has not been set in the judgement but Valve may have to pay as much as 75% of the ACCC’s legal costs in addition to any liability payments.
Potential relief will be discussed at an April 15th hearing.
