Steam Software

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Steam

Steam's storefront page as seen through the Steam

client

Developer(s) Valve Corporation

Initial release September 12, 2003

Stable release API v017, Package

1459198004 (March 28, 2016) [±]

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.ph

p?title=Template:Latest_stable_softw

are_release/Steam&action=edit)

Preview release API v017, Package:

1462929557 (May 20, 2016) [±]

(https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.ph

p?title=Template:Latest_preview_soft

ware_release/Steam&action=edit)

Development status Active

Written in C++

Objective-C (OS X)

Java (Android)

Platform Desktop client

Microsoft Windows

OS X

Linux

SteamOS

Limited client

PlayStation 3

iOS

Android

Available in

Steam (software)From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Steam is a digital distribution platform developed by Valve

Corporation offering digital rights management (DRM),

multiplayer gaming and social networking services. Steam

provides the user with installation and automatic updating of games on multiple computers, and community featur es such

as fr iends lists and groups, cloud saving, and in-game voice

and chat functionality. The software provides a freely

available application programming interface (API) called

Steamworks, which developers can use to integrate many of

Steam's functions into their products, including networking,

matchmaking, in-game achievements, micro-transactions,

and support for user-created content through Steam

Workshop.

Though initially developed for use on Microsoft Windows,

versions f or OS X and Linux operating systems were later

released. Applications whose main functions are chatting

and shopping have also been released for iOS and Android

mobile devices. The Steam website also replicates much of

the storefront and social network features of the stand-alone

application.

As of Septem ber 2015, there are 6,464 Windows games,

2,323 OS X games, and 1,500 Linux games available on

Steam.[4] The service has over 125 million active[a] users.[6]

Steam has had as many as 12.5 million concurrent users as

of November 2015.[7] The Steam platform is considered to

be the largest digital distribution platform for PC gaming; in

November 2009, Stardock estimated it at 70%[8] and then

later, in October 2013, it was estimated by Screen Digest

that 75% of games bought online were downloaded through

Steam.[9] In 2015, user s purchased titles through Steam or

through Steam keys from third-party vendors totaling

around $3.5 billion representing 15% of the global PC game

sales for the year, based on estimations made by the tracking

website Steam Spy.[10][11] The success of the Steam

platf or m has led to the development of a line of Steam

Machine micro-consoles and personal computers meeting

minimum specifications, and SteamOS, a Linux-based

operating system built around the Steam client.

Contents

1 History1.1 Initial release1.2 Profitability

2 Client functionality

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28 languages[1]

Type Content delivery

digital rights

management

social networking

License Proprietary software

Alexa rank 194 (March 2016)(Store)[2]

199 (March 2016)

(Community)[3]

Website store.steampowered.com (htt

p://store.steampowered.com)

2.1 Software delivery and maintenance2.2 Storefront features

2.2.1 Storefront policies2.3 Security2.4 User interface2.5 Developer features2.6 Steam Workshop2.7 Steam for Schools

3 Supported platforms3.1 OS X3.2 Linux3.3 Consoles3.4 Mobile platforms3.5 Steam Machine

4 Market share and impact4.1 Sector competition

5 See also6 Notes7 References8 External links

History

Initial release

Before implementing Steam, Valve Corporation had problems updating its online games, such as Counter-

Strike; providing patches would result in most of the online user base disconnecting for several days. Valve

decided to create a platform that would update games automatically and implement stronger anti-piracy and

anti-cheat measures. Valve also recognized, through user polls at the time of its announcement in 2002, that atleast 75% of their users had access to high-speed Internet connections, which would only grow with planned

Internet expansion in the following years, and recognized that they could deliver game content faster to players

than through retail channels.[12] Valve approached several companies, including Microsoft, Yahoo!, and

RealNetworks to build a client with these features, but were declined.[13]

Steam's development began in 2002.[14] Working titles for the product included "Grid" and "Gazelle".[15] It was

first revealed to the public on March 22, 2002, at the Game Developers Conference, where it was presented

purely as a distribution network.[16] To demonstrate the ease of integrating Steam with a game, Relic

Entertainment created a special version of Impossible Creatures.[17] However, the game was not released on

Steam until 2015. Valve partnered with several companies, including AT&T, Acer, and GameSpy Industries.

The first mod released on the system was Day of Defeat .[18]

The Steam client was first made available for public beta testing in January 2003 during the beta period for

Counter-Strike 1.6, for which it was mandatory to install and use. At the time, Steam's primary function was

streamlining the patch process common in online computer games. Steam was an optional component for all

other games. 80,000–300,000 gamers tested the system when it was in its beta period.[18][19] The system and

website choked under the strain of thousands of users simultaneously attempting to play the latest version of

Counter-Strike.[20] In 2004, the World Opponent Network was shut down and replaced by Steam. The online

features of games which required World Opponent Network ceased to work unless they were converted to

Steam.[21]

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Timeline of events

2002 Revealed to public

Beta period begins

2003 Official release

2004 Half-Life 2 release

2005 First publisher partnership

2006

2007 Steam Community launched

2008 Steamworks released

Matchmaking released

2009 Steam Cloud released

2010

UI Update released

OS X client released

Translation Server opened

2011

PS3 Steamworks integration

Portal 2 cross-platform play

Steam Workshop

2012

Steam mobile application

Steam for Schools

Steam Greenlight

Big Picture Mode

Non-gaming applicati ons

2013

Steam Machine hardware (beta)

Linux client released

Public customer reviews

Family Sharing

2014 In-Home Streami ng

Steam Music released

2015

Broadcast streaming

Steam Hardware/SteamOSSource 2 first introduced

2016 St eamVR

Around that time, Valve began negotiating contracts with several

publishers and independent developers to release their products, including

Rag Doll Kung Fu and Darwinia, on Steam. Canadian publisher Strategy

First announced in December 2005 that it would partner with Valve for

digital distribution of current and future titles.[22] In 2002, the managing

director of Valve, Gabe Newell, said he was offering mod teams a game

engine license and distribution over Steam for US$995.[18] Valve's Half-

Life 2 was the first game to require installation of the Steam client to play,

even for retail copies. This decision was met with concerns about software

ownership, software requirements, and issues with overloaded servers

demonstrated previously by the Counter-Strike rollout.[23] During this

time users faced multiple issues attempting to play the game.[14][24][25]

Profitability

Beginning with Rag Doll Kung Fu in October 2005, third-party games

became available for purchase and download on Steam,[26] and Valve

announced that Steam had become profitable because of some highlysuccessful Valve games. Although digital distribution could not yet match

retail volume, profit margins for Valve and developers were far larger on

Steam.[27] Large developer-publishers, including id Software,[28] Eidos

Interactive,[29] and Capcom,[30] began distributing their games on Steam

in 2007. By May that year, 13 million accounts had been created on the

service, and 150 games were for sale on the platform.[31][32]

Client functionality

Software delivery and maintenance

Steam's primary service is to allow its users to download games and other

software that they have in their virtual software libraries to their local computers as game cache files

(GCFs).[33] Steam provides digital rights management (DRM) for software titles by providing "custom

executable generation" for executable files that are unique for each user; this allows the user to install the

software on multiple computing devices via Steam or through software backups without limitations. [34] The

user is required to be running Steam while connected to the Internet for authentication prior to playing a game

or have previously set up Steam in an "offline" mode while connected to the Internet, storing their credentials

locally to allow play without an Internet connection.[35] Steam's DRM is available to software developersthrough Steamworks; the service allows developers and publishers to include other forms of DRM and other

authentication services than Steam; for example, some games on Steam require the use of Games for

Windows – Live and some titles from publisher Ubisoft require the use of their UPlay gaming service. [36]

In September 2008, Valve added support for Steam Cloud, a service that can automatically store saved game

and related custom files on Valve's servers; users can access this data from any machine running the Steam

client.[37] Games must use the appropriate features of Steamworks for Steam Cloud to work. Users can disable

this feature on a per-game and per-account basis.[38] In May 2012, the service added the ability for users to

manage their game libraries from remote clients, including computers and mobile devices; users can instruct

Steam to download and install games they own through this service if their Steam client is currently active andrunning.[39] Some games sold through retail channels can be redeemed as titles for users' libraries within Steam

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by entering a product code within the software.[40] For games that incorporate Steamworks, users can buy

redemption codes from other vendors and redeem these in the Steam client to add the title to their libraries.

Steam also offers a framework for selling and distributing downloadable content (DLC) for games.[41][42]

In September 2013, Steam introduced the ability to share most games with family members and close friends

by authorizing machines to access one's library. Authorized players can install the game locally and play it

separately from the owning account. Users can access their saved games and achievements providing the main

owner is not playing. When the main player initiates a game while a shared account is using it, the shared

account user is allowed a few minutes to either save their progress and close the game or purchase the game for

his or her own account.[43] Within Family View, introduced in January 2014, parents can adjust settings for their

children's tied accounts, limiting the functionality and accessibility to the Steam client and purchased titles. [44]

In accordance with its Acceptable Use Policy, Valve retains the right to block and unblock customers' access to

their games and Steam services when Valve's Anti-Cheat (VAC) software determines that the user is cheating in

multiplayer games, selling accounts to others or trading games to exploit regional price differences. [45]

Blocking such users initially removed access to his or her other games, leading to some users with high-value

accounts losing access because of minor infractions of the AUP.[46] Valve later changed its policy to be similar

to that of Electronic Arts' Origin platform, in which blocked users can still access their games but are heavilyrestricted, limited to playing in offline mode and unable to participate in Steam Community features.[47]

Customers also lose access to their games and Steam account if they refuse to accept changes to Steam's end

user license agreements; this occurred in August 2012.[48] In April 2015, Valve added Game Bans to its service,

allowing developers to set bans on players for their games but enacted and enforced at the Steam level,

allowing developers to police their own gaming communities in customizable manner.[49]

Storefront features

The Steam client includes a digital storefront called the Steam Store through which users can evaluate and

purchase computer games. Once the game is bought, a software license is permanently attached to the user'sSteam account, allowing him or her to download the software on any compatible device. Game licenses can be

given to other accounts under certain conditions. Content is delivered from an international network of servers

using a proprietary file transfer protocol.[50] Steam sells its products in US and Canadian dollars, euros, pounds

sterling, Brazilian reais, Russian rubles, Indonesian rupiah and Indian rupees[51] depending on the user's

location.[52] From December 2010, the client supports the Webmoney payment system, which is popular in

many European, Middle Eastern, and Asian countries.[53] Starting in April 2016, Steam began accepting

payments in Bitcoin, valued based on the user's geolocation, with transactions handled by BitPay.[54] The Steam

storefront validates the user's region; the purchase of titles may be restricted to specific regions because of

release dates, game classification, or agreements with publishers. Since 2010, the Steam Translation Server project offers Steam users to assist with the translation of the Steam client, storefront, and a selected library of

Steam games for twenty-seven languages.[55] Steam also allows users to purchase downloadable content for

games, and for some specific game titles such as Team Fortress 2, the ability to purchase in-game inventory

items. In February 2015, Steam began to open similar options for in-game item purchases for third-party

games.[56]

The Steam store also enables users to redeem store product keys to add software from their library. These

alphanumeric product keys can be sold by legitimate third-party providers such as Humble Bundle (in which a

portion of the sale is given back to the publisher or distributor), distributed as part of a physical release to

redeem the game, or given to a user as part of promotions, often used to deliver Kickstarter and other crowd

funding rewards. Each code is unique and specific for one product or bundle, and once used, cannot be

redeemed again. There has been a grey market around Steam keys, where less reputable buyers purchase a large

number of Steam keys for a game when it is offered for a low cost, and then resell these keys to users or other

third-party sites at a higher price, keeping the markup profit for themselves.[57][58] This has caused some of

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these third-party sites, like G2A, to be embroiled in this grey market.[59] It is possible for publishers to have

Valve to track down where specific keys have been used and cancel them, removing the product from the user's

libraries, leaving the user to seek any recourse with the third-party they purchased from. [60] Other legitimate

storefronts, like Humble Bundle, have set a minimum price that must be spent to obtain Steam keys as to

discourage mass purchases that would enter the grey market.[61]

In 2013, Steam added the ability for players to post their own reviews of games and other products bought or

owned through Steam, with the ability to give a binary recommendation for the game. Other users cansubsequently rate these reviews as helpful, humorous, or otherwise not help, which are then used to highlight

the most useful reviews on the game's Steam store page. Steam will also classify games and products based on

the general aggregate reception of these reviews, and enable users to sort on this aggregate reception while

browsing the store.[62] In May 2016, Steam further broke out these aggregations between all reviews overall

and those made more recently in the last 30 days, a change Valve acknowledges to how game updates,

particularly those in Early Access, can alter the impression of a game to users.[63]

During mid-2011, Valve began to offer free-to-play games, such as Global Agenda, Spiral Knights and

Champions Online; this offer was linked to the company's move to make Team Fortress 2 a free-to-play title.[64]

Valve included support via Steamworks for microtransactions for in-game items in these titles through Steam's purchasing channels, in a similar manner to the in-game store for Team Fortress 2. Later that year, Valve added

the ability to trade in-game items and "unopened" game gifts between users.[65] Steam Coupons, which was

introduced in December 2011, provides single-use coupons that provide a discount to the cost of items. Steam

Coupons can be provided to users by developers and publishers; users can trade these coupons between friends

in a similar fashion to gifts and in-game items.[66] Steam Market, a feature introduced in beta in December 2012

that would allow users to sell virtual items to others via Steam Wallet funds, further extended the idea. Valve

levies a transaction fee of 15% on such sales and game publishers that use Steam Market pay a transaction fee.

For example, Team Fortress 2 —the first game supported at the beta phase—incurred both fees. Full support for

other games was expected to be available in early 2013.[67] In April 2013, Valve added subscription-based game

support to Steam; the first game to use this service was Darkfall Unholy Wars.[68]

In October 2012, Steam introduced non-gaming applications, which will be sold through the service. [69]

Creativity and productivity applications can access the core functions of the Steamworks API, allowing them to

use Steam's simplified installation and updating process, and incorporate features including cloud saving and

Steam Workshop. Developers of non-gaming software may submit their applications to the Steam Greenlight

service to judge interest for later inclusion on the Steam storefront.[70] The Steam store allows game

soundtracks to be purchased to be played via Steam Music or integrated with the user's other media players.[71]

Valve has also added the ability for publishers to rent and sell digital movies via the service, with initially most

being video game documentaries.[72] Following Warner Bros. Entertainment offering the Mad Max films

alongside the September 2015 release of the 2015 video game based on the series,[73] Lionsgate entered into

agreement with Valve to rent over one hundred feature films from its catalog through Steam starting in April

2016, with more films to follow later.[74] With the onset of Steam Machines as announced in March 2015, the

Steam storefront also includes the ability to purchase Steam Machine-related hardware via the Steam store.[75]

In conjunction with developers and publishers, Valve frequently provides discounted sales on games on a daily

and weekly basis, sometimes oriented around a publisher or genre theme, and may allow games to be played for

free during the days of these sales. The site had offered a large selection of games at discount during its annual

Summer and Holiday sales, including gamification of these sales to incentive users to purchase more games.[76]

Storefront policies

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In June 2015, Valve created a formal process to allow purchasers to request full refunds on games they had

purchased on Steam for any reason, with refunds guaranteed within the first two weeks and if the player had not

spent more than two hours in the game.[77] Prior to June 2015, Valve has had a no-refunds policy but in some

circumstances it has offered refunds if third-party content fails to work or improperly reports on certain

features. For example, the Steam version of From Dust was originally stated to have a single, post-installation

online DRM check with its publisher Ubisoft, but the released version of the game required a DRM check with

Ubisoft's servers each time it was used. At the request of Ubisoft, Valve offered refunds to customers who

bought the game while Ubisoft worked to release a patch that would remove the DRM check altogether.[78] On

The War Z 's release, players found that the game was still in an alpha-build state and lacked many of the

features advertised on its Steam store page. Though the developers Hammerpoint Interactive altered the

description after launch to reflect the current state of the game software, Valve removed the title from sale and

offered refunds to those who had bought it.[79] Valve also removed Earth: Year 2066 from the Early Access

program and offered refunds after discovering that the game's developers had reused assets from other games

and used developer tools to erase negative complaints about the title.[80] The lack of a formal refund policy led

the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to sue Valve in 2014 for a violations of Australian

consumer laws that required stores to offer refunds for faulty or broken products.[81] The Commission won the

lawsuit in March 2016, though recognizing Valve changed its policy in the interim, with fines to be determined

at a later date.[82]

Valve will remove games if they no longer meet Valve's business terms for developers. Grand Theft Auto: Vice

City was removed from Steam because of a claim from the Recording Industry Association of America over an

expired license for one of the songs on the soundtrack.[83] Near the launch of Electronic Arts' (EA) own digital

storefront Origin, Valve removed Crysis 2 and Dragon Age II from Steam because the terms of service

prevented games from having their own in-game storefront for downloadable content.[84] In the case of Crysis

2, a "Maximum Edition" that contained all the available downloadable content for the game and removed the

in-game storefront was re-added to Steam.[85] Games that are removed can still be downloaded and played by

those that have already purchased these titles.[83]

Security

The popularity of Steam has led to the service's being attacked by hackers in the past. A notable attempt

occurred on November 6, 2011, when Valve temporarily closed the community forums, citing potential hacking

threats to the service. On November 10, Valve reported that the hack had compromised one of its customer

databases, potentially allowing the perpetrators to access customer information—including encrypted password

and credit card details. At that time, Valve was not aware whether the intruders actually accessed this

information or discovered the encryption method, but nevertheless warned users to be alert for fraudulent

activity.[86][87]

Valve added Steam Guard functionality to the Steam client in March 2011 to protect against the hijacking of

accounts via phishing schemes, one of the largest support issues Valve had at the time.[88] Steam Guard was

advertised to take advantage of the identity protection provided by Intel's second-generation Core processors

and compatible motherboard hardware, which allows users to lock their account to a specific computer. Once

locked, activity by that account on other computers must first be approved by the user on the locked computer.

Support APIs for Steam Guard are available to third-party developers through Steamworks.[89] Steam Guard

also offers two-factor, risk-based authentication that uses a one-time verification code sent to a verified email

address associated with the Steam account; this was later expanded to include two-factor authentication through

the Steam mobile application, known as Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator.[90] If Steam Guard is enabled, the

verification code is sent each time the account is used from an unknown machine.[91]

By 2015, between Steam-based game inventories, trading cards, and other virtual goods attached to a user's

account, Valve has stated that the potential monetary value has drawn hackers to try to access user accounts for

financial benefit, and continue to encourage users to secure accounts with Steam Guard; when trading was

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When hooking up one's computer to a

television, Steam's "Big Picture" mode"turns" the computer into a console,

allowing for the user to experience console

simulation.

introduced in 2011, Valve saw a 2000% increase in account hijacking.[92] Valve reported that in December

2015, around 77,000 accounts per month are hijacked, enabling the hijackers to empty out the user's inventory

of items through the trading features. At that time, the company announced that in an effort to improve security,

new restrictions would be added in March 2016 under which 15-day holds will be placed on traded items unless

they activate, and authenticate with Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator.[93][92]

ReVuln, a commercial vulnerability research firm, published a paper in October 2012 that said the Steam

browser protocol was posing a security risk by enabling malicious exploits through a simple user click on a

maliciously crafted steam:// URL in a browser.[94] The report was taken up by various online

publications.[95][96][97][98] This was the second serious vulnerability of gaming-related software following a

recent problem with Ubisoft's copy protection system "Uplay";[99] the German IT platform "Heise online"

recommended strict separation of gaming and sensitive data, for example using a PC dedicated to gaming,

gaming from a second Windows installation, or using a computer account with limited rights dedicated to

gaming.[98]

In July 2015, a bug in the software allowed anyone to reset the password to any account by using the "forgot

password" function of the client. High profile professional gamers and streamers lost access to their

accounts.[100][101]

In December 2015, Steam's content delivery network was misconfigured in response to aDDoS attack, causing cached store pages containing personal information to be temporarily exposed for 34,000

users.[102][103]

User interface

Since November 2013, Steam allows for users to review their purchased titles and organize them into categories

set by the user and add to favorite lists for quick access.[104] Players can add non-Steam games to their libraries,

allowing the game to be easily accessed from the Steam client and providing support where possible for Steam

Overlay features. The Steam interface allows for user-defined shortcuts to be added. In this way, third-party

modifications and games not purchased through the Steam Store can use Steam features. Valve sponsors anddistributes some modifications free-of-charge;[105] and modifications that use Steamworks can also use VAC,

Friends, the server browser, and any Steam features supported by their parent game. For most games launched

from Steam, the client provides an in-game overlay that can be accessed by a keystroke. From the overlay, the

user can access his or her Steam Community lists and participate in chat, manage selected Steam settings, and

access a built-in web browser without having to exit the game.[106] Since the beginning of February 2011 as a

beta version, the overlay also allows players to take screenshots of the games in process;[107] it automatically

stores these and allows the player to review, delete, or share them during or after his or her game session. As a

full version on February 24, 2011, this feature was reimplemented so that users could share screenshots on

websites of Facebook, Twitter, and Reddit straight from a user's screenshot manager.[108]

Steam's "Big Picture" mode was announced in 2011;[109] public

betas started in September 2012 and were integrated into the

software in December 2012.[110] Big Picture mode is a 10-foot user

interface, which optimizes the Steam display to work on high-

definition televisions, allowing the user to control Steam with a

gamepad or with a keyboard and mouse. Newell has stated that Big

Picture mode is a step towards a dedicated Steam entertainment

hardware unit.[111] SteamVR, a virtual reality (VR) Big Picture

interface, was introduced in beta in January 2014. The SteamVR

mode enables the user to operate the Big Picture mode and play any

game in their Steam library with a virtual theater displayed through

the VR headset, the equivalent of looking at a 225-inch television

screen, according to Valve.[112] The mode was first introduced in

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beta for the Oculus Rift headset[113] and later expanded in March 2015 to support the HTC Vive, a VR unit

developed jointly with Valve, with the feature to be publicly released shortly after the Vive's public launch in

April 2016.[114][112] In-Home Streaming was introduced in May 2014; this allows users to stream games

installed on one computer to another—regardless of platform—on the same home network.[115]

The Steam client, as part of a social network service, allows users to identify friends and join groups using the

Steam Community feature.[116] Users can use text chat and peer-to-peer VoIP with other users, identify which

games their friends and other group members are playing, and join and invite friends to Steamworks-basedmultiplayer games that support this feature. Users can participate in forums hosted by Valve to discuss Steam

games. Each user has a unique page that shows his or her groups and friends, game library including earned

achievements, game wishlists, and other social features; users can choose to keep this information private. [117]

In January 2010, Valve reported that 10 million of the 25 million active Steam accounts had signed up to Steam

Community.[118] In conjunction with the 2012 Steam Summer Sale, user profiles were updated with Badges

reflecting the user's participation in the Steam community and past events.[119] Steam Trading Cards were

introduced in beta in May 2013 and were fully supported by June 2013. By playing specific games, players

would earn virtual trading cards, which they could trade with friends and use towards gaining rewards on the

service such as game discounts, downloadable content, or in-game items, and customize their user profile

page.[120][121] The Steam client has become an OpenID provider, allowing third-party websites to use a Steam

user's identity without requiring the user to expose his or her Steam credentials.[122][123] In order to prevent

abuse, access to most community features is restricted until a one-time payment of at least US$5 is made to

Valve. This requirement can be fulfilled by making any purchase of US$5 or more on Steam, or by adding at

least US$5 to the wallet.[124]

Through Steamworks, Steam provides a means of server browsing for multiplayer games that use the Steam

Community features, allowing users to create lobbies with friends or members of common groups. Steamworks

also provides Valve Anti-Cheat (VAC), Valve's proprietary anti-cheat system; game servers automatically detect

and report users who are using cheats in online, multiplayer games.[125] In August 2012, Valve added new

features—including dedicated hub pages for games that highlight the best user-created content, top forum posts,

and screenshots—to the Community area.[126] In December 2012, a feature called Game Guides, where users

can upload text and images detailing games and game strategies in the same manner as GameFAQs was

added.[127] Starting in beta in December 2014 and publicly released in January 2015, the Steam client allows

players to broadcast video streams to the public or Steam friends while playing video games.[128][129]

In September 2014, Steam Music, a built-in music player, was added to the Steam client, allowing users to play

through music stored on their computer or to stream from a locally networked computer.[130][131]

Developer features

Valve offers Steamworks, an application programming interface (API) that provides development and

publishing tools to take advantage of Steam client's features, free-of-charge to game and software

developers.[132] Steamworks provides networking and player authentication tools for both server and peer-to-

peer multiplayer games, matchmaking services, support for Steam community friends and groups, Steam

statistics and achievements, integrated voice communications, and Steam Cloud support, allowing games to

integrate with the Steam client. The API also provides anti-cheating devices and digital copy management.[133]

Developers of software available on Steam are able to track sales of their titles through the Steam store. In

February 2014, Valve announced that it will allow developers to set up their own sales for their titles

independent of any sales that Valve may set for titles.[134]

Steam Greenlight, announced in July 2012 and released the following month,[135] is a way for Steam users to

help choose which games are added to the service. Developers are able to submit information about their

games, as well as early builds or beta versions, for consideration by users. Users can pledge support for these

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games, and Valve will help to make top-pledged games available on the Steam service.[136] In response to

complaints during its first week that finding games to support was made difficult by a flood of inappropriate or

false submissions,[137] Valve required developers to pay US$100 to list a game on the service to reduce

illegitimate submissions. The fee will be donated to the charity Child's Play.[138] A later modification allowed

developers to put conceptual ideas on the Greenlight service to garner interest in potential projects free-of-

charge; votes from such projects are only visible to the developer.[139] Valve also allowed non-gaming software

to be voted onto the service through Greenlight.[140]

The first game to be released via Steam Greenlight was McPixel .[141] The initial process offered by Steam

Greenlight was panned because while developers favored the concept, the rate of games that are eventually

approved by Valve is very small.[142] Valve has acknowledged that this is a problem and believes it can improve

upon it; Valve's Tom Bui said, "we aren't where we want to be yet".[143] In January 2013, Newell stated that

Valve recognized that its role in Greenlight has been perceived as a bottleneck, something it plans to eliminate

in the future through an open marketplace infrastructure.[144][145] On the eve of Greenlight's first anniversary,

Valve simultaneously approved 100 titles through the Greenlight process to demonstrate this change of

direction.[146] Valve stated in January 2014 that it plans to phase out the Greenlight process in favor of

providing developers with easier means to put their games onto the Steam service.[147]

The September 2014"Discovery Update" added tools that would allow existing Steam users to be curators for game

recommendations, and sorting functions that presented more popular titles and recommended titles specific to

the user, as to allow more games to be introduced on Steam without the need of Steam Greenlight, while

providing some means to highlight user-recommended games.[148]

Valve added the ability for developers to sell games under an early access model with a special "Early Access"

section of the Steam store, starting in March 2013. This program allows developers to release functional but

yet-incomplete products such as beta versions to the service to allow users to buy the titles and help provide

testing and feedback towards the final production. Early access also helps to provide funding to the developers

to help complete their titles.[149]

Steam Workshop

The Steam Workshop is a Steam account-based hosting service for videogame user-created content. Depending

on the title, new levels, art assets, gameplay modifications, or other content may be published to or installed

from the Steam Workshop through an automated, online account-based process. The Workshop was originally

used for distribution of new items for Team Fortress 2;[150] it was redesigned to extend support for any game,

including modifications for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, in early 2012.[151] A May 2012 patch for Portal 2,

enabled by a new map-making tool through the Steam Workshop, introduced the ability to share user-created

levels.[152] Independently-developed games, including Dungeons of Dredmor , are able to provide SteamWorkshop support for user-generated content.[153] Dota 2 became Valve's third published title available for the

Steam Workshop in June 2012; its features include customizable accessories, skins, and voice packs.[154]

Valve has provided some user-developed Workshop content as paid-for features in Valve-developed games,

including Team Fortress 2 and DOTA 2; as of January 2015, over $57 million has been paid to content creators

using the Workshop.[155][156] Valve began allowing developers to use these advanced features in January 2015;

the developer and content generator will share the profits of the sale of these items; the feature went live in

April 2015, starting with various mods for Skyrim.[155][157][158] This feature was pulled a few days afterward

following negative user feedback and reports of pricing and copyright misuse.[159][160][161] Valve has stated they

are still interested in offering this type of functionality in the future, but will review the implementation to

avoid these previous mistakes.[162] In November 2015, the Steam client was updated with the ability for game

developers to offer in-game items for direct sale via the store interface.[163][164] The first game to use the item

store was Rust in 2015.[165]

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Steam for Schools

Steam for Schools is a function-limited version of the Steam client that is available free-of-charge to

educational institutions for use in classrooms. It is part of Valve's initiative to support gamification of learning

for classroom instruction; it was released alongside free versions of Portal 2 and a standalone program called

"Puzzle Maker" that allows teachers and students to create and manipulate levels. It features additional

authentication security that allows teachers to share and distribute content via a Steam Workshop-type interface

but blocks access from students.[166][167]

Supported platforms

Steam was released in 2003[14] exclusively for the Microsoft Windows operating system[168] but has since been

expanded to other platforms.

OS X

On March 8, 2010, Valve announced that Steam was developing a client for OS X.[168] The announcement was

preceded by a change in the Steam beta client to support the cross-platform WebKit web browser renderingengine instead of the Trident engine of Internet Explorer.[169][170][171] Before this announcement, Valve teased

the release by e-mailing several images to Mac community and gaming websites; the images featured

characters from Valve games with Apple logos and parodies of vintage Macintosh advertisements. [172][173]

Valve developed a full video homage to Apple's 1984 Macintosh commercial to announce the availability of

Half-Life 2 and its episodes on the service; some concept images for the video had previously been used to

tease the Mac Steam client.[174]

Steam for OS X was originally planned for release in April 2010; it was launched worldwide on May 12, 2010,

following a successful beta period. In addition to the Steam client, several features were made available to

developers, allowing them to take advantage of the cross-platform Source engine, and platform and network

capabilities using Steamworks.[175] Through SteamPlay, the OS X client allows players who have purchased

compatible products in the Windows version to download the Mac versions at no cost, allowing them to

continue playing the game on the other platform. Some third-party titles may require the user to re-purchase

them to gain access to the cross-platform functionality.[176] The Steam Cloud is cross-platform compatible.

Multiplayer games can also be cross-compatible, allowing Windows and Mac players to play with each

other.[168]

Linux

Valve announced in July 2012 that it was developing a Steam client for Linux and modifying the Source engine

to work natively on Linux, based on the Ubuntu distribution.[177] This announcement followed months of

speculation, primarily from the website Phoronix that had discovered evidence of Linux developing in recent

builds of Steam and other Valve software.[178] Newell stated that getting Steam and games to work on Linux is

a key strategy for Valve; Newell called the closed nature of Microsoft Windows 8, "a catastrophe for everyone

in the PC space", and that Linux would maintain "the openness of the platform".[179] Valve is extending support

to any developers that want to bring their games to Linux, by "making it as easy as possible for anybody who's

engaged with us—putting their games on Steam and getting those running on Linux", according to Newell.[179]

The team developing the Linux client had been working for a year before the announcement to validate thatsuch a port would be possible.[180] As of the official announcement, a near-feature-complete Steam client for

Linux had been developed and successfully run on Ubuntu.[180] Internal beta testing of the Linux client started

in October 2012; external beta testing occurred in early November the same year.[181][182] Open beta clients for

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Linux were made available in late December 2012,[183] and the client was officially released in mid-February

2013.[184] Valve's Linux group will focus on improving the Steam client and will assure that its selected first

Source game, Left 4 Dead 2, will run at an acceptable frame rate and degree of connectivity with the Windows

and OS X versions. From there, it will work on porting other games to Ubuntu and expanding to other Linux

distributions.[177][185] In early August 2012, Valve said it had successfully completed the Left 4 Dead 2 port.[186]

Following Valve's announcement, Devolver Digital announced that it will port Serious Sam 3: BFE with

Steamworks support to the Ubuntu Linux distribution.[187] Linux games will also be eligible for SteamPlay

availability; The Cave was announced as one of the first titles to take advantage of this.[188] Versions of Steam

working under Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux were released by October 2013.[189] On June 5, 2014, the

number of Linux-compatible games on Steam reached 500[190] while on March 11, 2015 the number of native

games available via Steam for Linux / SteamOS had surpassed 1000.[191]

Consoles

At E3 2010, Newell announced that Steamworks would arrive on the PlayStation 3 with Portal 2. It would

provide automatic updates, community support, downloadable content and other unannounced features.[192]

Steamworks made its debut on consoles with Portal 2 's PlayStation 3 release. Several features—includingcross-platform play and instant messaging, Steam Cloud for saved games, and the ability for PS3 owners to

download Portal 2 from Steam (Windows and Mac) at no extra cost—were offered.[193] Valve's Counter-Strike:

Global Offensive also supports Steamworks and cross-platform features on the PlayStation 3, including using

keyboard and mouse controls as an alternative to the gamepad.[194] Valve said it "hope[s] to expand upon this

foundation with more Steam features and functionality in DLC and future content releases".[195]

The Xbox 360 does not have support for Steamworks. Newell said that they would have liked to bring the

service to the console through the game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which would have allowed Valve to

provide the same feature set that it did for the PlayStation 3,[196] but later said that cross-platform play would

not be present in the final version of the game.[197] Valve attributes the inability to use Steamworks on the Xbox360 to limitations in the Xbox Live regulations of the ability to deliver patches and new content. Valve's Erik

Johnson stated that Microsoft requires that new content must be certified and validated before distribution,

which would limit the usefulness of Steamworks' delivery approach.[198]

Mobile platforms

Valve released an official Steam client for iOS and Android devices in late January 2012, following a short beta

period.[199] The application allows players to log in to their accounts to browse the storefront, manage their

games, and communicate with friends in the Steam community. The application also incorporates a two-factor

authentication system that works with Steam Guard, further enhancing the security of a user's account. Newellstated that the application was a strong request from Steam users and sees it as a means "to make [Steam] richer

and more accessible for everyone".[200]

Steam Machine

Prior to 2013, industry analysts believed that Valve was developing hardware and tuning features of Steam with

apparent use on its own hardware. These computers were pre-emptively dubbed as "Steam Boxes" by the

gaming community and expected to be a dedicated machine focused upon Steam functionality and maintaining

the core functionality of a traditional video game console.[201] During the week beginning on September 23,

2013, Valve unveiled a console operating system called SteamOS built atop the Linux operating system, a

console input device called the Steam Controller, and the final concept of the Steam Machine hardware, which

were tentatively scheduled to be released in 2014 but now will be released in late 2015.[202] Unlike other

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Graph showing the sales of Garry's Mod , a digitally released game on

the Steam service. The largest spikes are caused by Steam sales and

promotions.[204] As of April 2014, it has sold 4.8 million copies

through the service.[205]

consoles, the Steam Machine has no set hardware; its technology is implemented at the discretion of the

manufacturer and is fully customizable in the same lieu as a personal computer.[203] The Steam client enables

users to purchase this hardware directly.

Market share and impact

Valve does not release any sales figures for

its Steam service; it only provides the datato companies with games on Steam,[206][207]

which they cannot release without

permission because of a non-disclosure

agreement with Valve.[208][209] However,

Stardock, the previous owner of competing

platform Impulse, estimated that as of 2009,

Steam had a 70% share of the digital

distribution market for video games.[8] In

early 2011, Forbes reported that Steam sales

constituted 50–70% of the US$4 billionmarket for downloaded PC games and that Steam offered game producers gross margins of 70% of purchase

price, compared with 30% at retail.[210] Steam's success has led to some criticism because of its support of

DRM and for being an effective monopoly.[211][212] Free Software Foundation founder Richard Stallman

commented on the issue following the announcement that Steam would come to Linux; he said that while he

supposes that its release can boost GNU/Linux adoption leaving users better off than with Microsoft Windows,

he stressed that he sees nothing wrong with commercial software but that the problem is that Steam is unethical

for not being free software and that its inclusion in GNU/Linux distributions teaches the users that the point is

not freedom and thus works against the software freedom that is his goal.[213]

In November 2011, the developer of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings revealed that Steam was responsible for 200,000 (80%) of the 250,000 online sales of the game.[214] Steam was responsible for 58.6% of gross revenue

for Defender's Quest during its first three months of release across six digital distribution platforms—

comprising four major digital game distributors and two methods of purchasing and downloading the game

directly from the developer.[215]

Because Steam is nearly required to play most games for personal computers, its customer service has been

highly criticized by its users, with users citing poor response times or lack of response in regards to issues such

as being locked out of one's library or having a non-working game redemption key. In March 2015, Valve had

been given a failing "F" grade from the Better Business Bureau due to a large number of complaints in Valve's

handling of Steam, leading Valve's Erik Johnson to state that "we don't feel like our customer service support iswhere it needs to be right now".[216] Johnson stated the company plans to better integrate customer support

features into the Steam client and be more responsive to such issues.[216] In December 2015, the French

consumer group UFC Que Choisir initiated a lawsuit against Valve for several of their Steam policies that

conflict or run afoul of French law.[217]

Sector competition

From its inception in 2003 through to nearly 2009, Steam had a mostly uncontested hold over the PC digital

distribution market before major competitors emerged with the largest competitors in the past being services

like Games for Windows – LIVE by Microsoft and Impulse by Stardock (both of which were shut down in

2013 and 2014 respectively).[218][219] Sales via the Steam catalog are estimated to be between 50 and 75 percent

of the total PC gaming market.[8][9] Steam’s critics often refer to the service as a monopoly, and claim that

placing such a percentage of the overall market can be detrimental to the industry as a whole and that sector

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competition can only yield positive results for the consumer.[220][221] Several developers also noted that Steam's

influence on the PC gaming market is powerful and one that smaller developers cannot afford to ignore or work

with, but believe that Valve's corporate practices for the service make it a type of "benevolent dictator", as

Valve attempts to make the service as amenable to developers.[222]

As Steam has grown in popularity many other competing services have been surfacing trying to emulate their

success. The most notable major competitors are Electronic Arts' (EA) Origin service, Ubisoft's Uplay,

Blizzard’s Battle.Net and GOG.com. Battle.NET, Origin, and Uplay all compete as publisher exclusive

platforms, while GOG.com's catalog includes many of the same titles as Steam but offers them in a DRM-free

platform. Upon launch of EA's Origin in 2011, several EA-published titles were no longer available for sale,

and users feared that future EA titles would be limited to Origin's service. Newell expressed an interest in EA

games returning to the Steam catalog though noted the situation was complicated. Newell stated, "We have to

show EA it’s a smart decision to have EA games on Steam, and we’re going to try to show them that."[223]

Ubisoft still publishes their games on the Steam platform, however most games published since the launch of

Uplay require this service to run after launching the game from Steam.

See also

List of games using Steam authenticationList of Steam Early Access gamesSteam Spy

Notes

a. In 2013, Valve defined an active account as owning a product or logging in during the past 90 days. [5]

References

1. "Steam Translation Server – Welcome". Retrieved February 7, 2016.

2. "steampowered.com Site Overview". Alexa Internet. Retrieved March 14, 2016.3. "steamcommunity.com Site Overview". Alexa Internet. Retrieved March 14, 2016.

4. Larabel, Michael (September 19, 2015). "Steam Crosses 1,500 Games Natively Available For Linux". Phoronix.Retrieved April 2, 2016.

5. "Steam Business Update", Steam Dev Days (Valve Corporation), February 11, 2013, "We reached a huge number justat the end of December of 75m active users. These aren't user accounts, these are actually users who own a product or

have been active in the community in the last 90 days."

6. Smith, Ryan (February 23, 2015). "Valve to Showcase SteamVR Hardware, Steam Machines, & More at GDC 2015".Anandtech. Retrieved February 24, 2015.

7. Makuch, Eddie (November 1, 2015). "Steam Reaches New Concurrent User Record". GameSpot . Retrieved November 2, 2015.

8. Graft, Kris (November 19, 2009). "Stardock Reveals Impulse, Steam Market Share Estimates". Gamasutra. Retrieved November 21, 2009.

9. Edwards, Cliff (November 4, 2013). "Valve Lines Up Console Partners in Challenge to Microsoft, Sony".

Bloomberg. Retrieved November 5, 2013.10. Wawro, Alex (January 4, 2016). "Steam Spy: Last year the paid Steam games market hit $3.5 billion". Gamasutra.

Retrieved January 4, 2016.11. Hall, Charlie (January 4, 2016). "Report: Paid Steam games market estimated at over $3.5 billion in 2015". Polygon.

Retrieved January 4, 2016.12. Case, Loyd (March 22, 2002). "Valve Changes Online Gaming Rules". PC Magazine. Retrieved February 14, 2016.

13. Lee, James. "The Last of the Independents?". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved July 9, 2010.

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Documents

Steam Software