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Tell HN: Don't buy Steam keys off Steam, they can be revoked at-will

4 points by sacnoradhq ↗ HN
Account Alert for {{account}}- Mar {{day}}, 2023 A Steam Product code you activated has been removed from your account.

Mar {{day}} {{product name}} Your recent Product code activation has been revoked due to a problem processing payment for this item. The games associated with this product code can no longer be played as a result. This could be due a problem with the payment methods you used to acquire this item from a third-party seller; or a problem with how the third-party seller acquired the Product code. Please contact the seller you acquired the Product code from for assistance.

If you would like to purchase the item, please visit the Steam Store. Otherwise you may choose to delete the local content associated with these games.

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13 comments

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sacnoradhq
"problem processing payment for this item." is a fraudulent misrepresentation because the seller already had my money.

It's also a problem of never owning software, only a "cloud license" with DRM and an ability to reach-in and delete what you paid for.

duped
If you owned the software you'd be guilty of buying stolen property. At least this way you haven't committed a crime.
badpun
It's impossible to own software. There is no such thing in the laws. You are only owining various rights regarding to it. As a creator, you have all the original rights, and then you can grant some of them to others via licencing, such as the right to make a copy and use the software (this is what is commonly portrayed as "buying software"). Same with all other copyrightable material.
sacnoradhq
It's only possible to own software by owning the rights to it, but the de facto and ordinary use of the word is to own a legal license to it. Conflating the meaning to the literal word would be an ungracious interpretation.

With or without licensure, it's possible to own control over software use with a stand-alone, offline installation source if it lacks the technical means to deny such installation.

Nuance in the mainstream landscape of ownership expectations of media changed in the 1980's when software became easily and widely reproducible. Copy-protection and DRM invaded software, then music, film, and finally (e)books as well. Much history will be lost due to an inability to archive works guarded by walled-gardens locked away by DRM.

badpun
> It's only possible to own software by owning the rights to it, but the de facto and ordinary use of the word is to own a legal license to it.

I disagree. There's a material difference here - you can only own things in one, total way (they're just yours and you can do with them whatever you please), while licences are granted on certain "fields of exploitation" (not sure if that's the exact term used in US laws - that's how it's called in my country). I.e. you can get licence to use software, but only in academic setting. Or (as is common) get licence to make copies of software, but not resale those copies etc. Or, get licence to use use software, but not to modify it (whereas you can obviously modify a thing that you own in a physical world). Etc, etc.

In short, physical ownership and licencing of immaterial works are two different things, and they're only conflated by marketing people in software companies who know that their customers don't want to expend energy to understand those differences anyway, and, what's more important, a "BUY SOFTWARE X" button is much more enticing than a "OBTAIN LICENCE TO SOME LIMITED RIGHTS TO SOFTWARE X" button (which is what is really happening under the hood when we click "BUY").

sacnoradhq
I will read that as sarcasm. :)

I guess one truly doesn't and can't own software unless they buy 100% controlling equity in its rights OR create it entirely themselves.

sacnoradhq
From their horrible customer support and making changes without my consent, I've also determined Valve doesn't need any more of my money.

GOG if I must but Steam has proven to be both a disreputable and unreliable platform.

Ekaros
Steam keys is all about the developers/publishers not Valve. They have started to limit the numbers they give out compared to sales on the Steam platform. But managing and revoking keys is up to publishers and Valve is pretty much hands-off with them.
KomoD
Sounds more like you bought it from a third party seller, which in that case, I'm not surprised and it's not Steam's fault.
Ekaros
Valve let's developers/publishers to manage the keys they generate for Steam pretty much freely. And revoke them as they like. Then again, I don't think such system could work otherwise.

Just take it with the store you bought it from and ask for replacement or refund. Or issue chargeback. At least with third-party stores they are very unlikely to go after other purchases.

przeor
I have the same issue with App Store.

Paid 5 bucks for app upfront. Now I can't download it from app store coz it's deleted from it.

I got robbed by Apple with their 30% rake on top of dev price tag.

Daedren
Where did you buy this from? There's plenty of produce code gray markets, this generally happens when the codes were acquired in an illegitimate manner. (Leaked codes, stolen credit cards, etc)
cruano
You cannot buy keys from Steam, you buy them from third-party sellers which can and do obtain them in illegitimate ways