According to a BBC News report, the EU is cracking down on sales practices that disadvantage customers. Six publishers have been fined 7.8 million euros (6.9 million pounds) for restricting cross-border sales, including Valve, Bandai Namco, Capcom, ZeniMax, Focus Home and Koch Media.
The practice, known as “geo-blocking,” means that games are blocked by region, preventing customers from buying cheaper versions destined for different countries. Some European countries have lower incomes than others, so these countries generally get cheaper prices. The countries that Geo-blocked were especially the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Five of the six reported cooperating with the EU, which reduced their fines, but according to the EU Competition Commission, Valve did not cooperate and their fine was set at 1.6 million. of euros (1.4 million pounds sterling). ) without reduction. Valve plans to appeal the fine and denies they refused to cooperate.
Its spokesman, Doug Lombardi, told the BBC that only 3% of all games using Steam had regional locks and that EU action could cause publishers to “raise prices in less rich regions” instead of allowing customers to buy games at cheaper prices.
The EU Competition Commissioner condemned the use of geo-blocking in a statement:
“These practices deprive European consumers of the benefits of the EU’s digital single market and the opportunity to look for the most suitable offer in the EU.”
What do you think about this situation? Do you think EU actions will benefit customers or lead to higher prices in less rich countries? Let us know in the comments.