Alright, you're sick of PC gamers whining about Modern Warfare 2 and how they're getting shafted by Activision and Infinity Ward. Dirty pirates and hackers deserve to get shafted, and that's all PC gamers are anyway, right?  

Well, among all the dirty hackers and pirates are more than a few legitimate players, and it seems that a bunch of them are getting banned for legitimately buying Modern Warfare 2. On the Steam forums, players have been reporting that their (legitimately bought) game CD keys being revoked. Valve representatives responded, saying that the players in question bought their keys from an "illegitimate seller" and would not be getting their games unlocked.

For console-only gamers and folks in the developed world, I cannot emphasize this enough: THIS IS NOT PIRACY. Digital CD key vendors exist and - in the majority of cases - are legitimate sellers. The vendors buy authorization codes at bulk prices, selling the keys to customers for profit. They're used as an alternative form of digital distribution designed to address lower-income markets, like Russia and Asia. Customers then redeem the codes for access. LAN cafe owners also use CD key vendors to buy and authorize multiple copies of the same game without having to buy a huge amount of boxes or discs.

It seems these legitimate vendors are no longer legitimate. At least not in Valve, Activision and Infinity Ward's eyes. In retrospect, one can see why this would happen. CD key vendors operate (legitimately) in a loophole that exists outside the usual channels, one uncomfortably close to piracy. Since Modern Warfare 2 incorporates Steam natively, it would be natural for Valve to want to channel all purchases of the game through Steam and at Steam's pricing. Savvy players (namely the people who just got revoked) would undoubtedly want to take advantage of the low bulk rates, eventually undermining region-based pricing schemes. Plus, Valve (and Blizzard) have their own Steam/Battle.net-based mass-authorization deals for LAN cafes that they would like to push.

The logic behind the move is solid and is a natural sign of the way the business is adapting but that doesn't really help the people who can't play Modern Warfare 2 anymore. Until they can cough up $60 dollars, anyway.

Legacy Comments (will be imported soon)

xenon

The worst thing is not corporations empoying these shitty tactics, it's gamers (customers) defending them.

HarassmentPanda

The issue that most of you seem to ignore is that you do not BUY games from Steam, you LICENSE them. While I have my own issues with this type of transaction, that doesn't change the facts: When you send money to Valve or the distributors of Asian CD keys you are merely obtaining a license to use the software. This has several consequences:

First, a prior poster mentioned the first sale doctrine, but the first sale doctrine does not apply to licensing transactions, only traditional sales. Because you are not purchasing the software, you do not have rights under the first sale doctrine.

Second, whenever you install this software you agree to an End User License Agreement ("EULA"). In this specific case, you have agreed to an EULA with the installation of both the Steam software and Modern Warfare 2. Both of these agreements contain region-specific licensing terms that make the use of the software outside of the intended region illegal. Valve and Activision are both within their legal rights to enforce the EULA that you agreed to upon installing the software.

If you are going to get mad at anyone, get mad at the CD key distributors that sold you these keys knowing it was in violation of the EULA. Demand your money back and be more careful about your future transactions.

drivenbyfate

As others have said, I dont think this really has anything to do with piracy but more with region locking. Im sure its just legitimate vendors buying CD keys for foreign versions of the games and then selling them in America...which companies hate for some reason.

Adam M ONeill

I kind of want them to pull this on some Aussies, at least we have the power to take them to court.

dj-anon

HarassmentPanda: However, it is still true that only the end user suffered the consequences.

Great excuse to make people buy the game twice.

Retrofraction

It is sort of dumb of the people to be buying Keys from another site than steam to run a program on steam.

sort of asking to be ripped off in my opinion, yes you can use keys not from steam to run steam apps but it is very important who and how you got them.

For exsample I bought UT3 at gamestop for $5 witch is at least $15 dollors less than steam charges. Since the makers of UT3 had made retail versions compatible I was able to get all of the content that all my steam brotheren paid $20 to get.

However I think that these people bought their not from a retail store, and not online from Steam or Activision; I think these people bought thier keys online from a differnet seller that claimed that thier product worked with steam.

Once again it is quite retarded to buy a Key to run a steam app if it didn't come from steam or the actutal Maker of the game.

AND generally it is dumb to just buying a key, instead of getting the game CD or directly from steam. *if you want it to run on steam*

I really don't think steam is at falt at all.

Just a bunch of consumers buying stuff that is too good to be true.

Wedge

Protip, Valve has nothing to do with this. Major publishers exert very strict control over their regional pricing with DD, this means they try to prevent you from buying games from a lower priced market and running them in yours however they can. While Valve themselves doesn't have a huge problem with this (you could buy L4D2 and send it to an AUS users to get a full uncut version even), the publishers can still make Valve do whatever they want with their own games they put out over Steam. It's the same reason there is stupid shit like Securom install limits on EA games sold over Steam.

matrixdude171

Why bother even making a PC version Activision? If you're going to say a big "fuck you" to the PC community, don't be a dick about it, and just say it.

Akitoscorpio

Somehow I'm not upset for choosing Phantasy star zero over this game.

ProfessorFoo

Damn it Valve. I expect this shit from Activision but you are supposed to be on our side.

Sexualchocolate

PC gamers - nuff said.

Minamu

How can it be my fault if I bought a key from someone they think is not cool? Why am I being punished? That's retarded.

Tet

If they have issues with a distributor selling keys outside their market isn't that something they should take up privately with the distributor and leave the end users alone? Oh wait, Activision, never mind.

pinstonlee

damn it activision stop trying to kill fps gamin on pc. i say we should just go buy bad company 2

Paul Rodenburg

What happened to this whole thing about Global trade being good for us all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyeemtS1jII

Inspector Buffoon

Things like this is why I don't want game retail to become all download based.