Steam now explicitly states you don’t own the digital games you’re buying

Have you ever bought an app or game from a digital storefront, only for it to suddenly disappear and become inaccessible without warning? It’s both confusing and frustrating, which is why some governments are stepping in and hoping to make things clearer for consumers. Gavin Newsom, governor of California, recently signed a new law (AB 2426) that involves the purchasing of digital goods and services. Under the new law, online storefronts that sell digital copies of video games, music, movies, TV shows, and ebooks must be explicit as to whether customers actually own what they’re purchasing. Some digital services are already adapting to the new regulations, which aren’t set to be enforced until next year. Steam is one such company, having already implemented a change in the Steam storefront that explicitly notifies customers that they’re purchasing “a license for the product on Steam” and don’t actually own the game outright. What does that mean for you? Well, a license is just permission for you to access content that’s provided by the service (i.e., the game). If the content is made unavailable for whatever reason, you aren’t entitled to access in perpetuity. (As opposed to buying a digital download, in which case you’re buying permission to download and keep said files.) According to Engadget, this new wording in Steam is used in all countries and territories, not just the United States. Further reading: Why digital games can vanish in a heartbeat Continue reading at 'PC World'

[ PC World | 2024-10-11 19:19:30 UTC ]
News tagged with: #game outright #digital services #digital download #explicitly states #digital games #digital storefront #suddenly disappear #gavin newsom #recently signed #digital goods #online storefronts #video games #tv shows #made unavailable #ebooks

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Steam now explicitly states you don’t own the digital games you’re buying'


Texas Officially Bans So-Called “Sexually Explicit” Books; Demands Book Ratings from Vendors

Texas's Governor signs a bill into law that gives him power over what books can be in libraries *and* forces ratings on books. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-06-15 10:40:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #libraries


Ubisoft's open-world Star Wars game is 'Outlaws' and it's coming in 2024

Ubisoft's long-awaited open world Star Wars game will arrive in 2024. The publisher announced Star Wars Outlaws on Sunday during Microsoft's Xbox and Starfield Direct showcase with a cinematic trailer that introduces fans to the game's Han Solo-like protagonist, Key Vess. Ubisoft is billing... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-06-11 17:27:38 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #worth noting #xbox series #cinematic trailer #key vess #past games #publisher announced


'Sand Land' is a new adventure game based on a manga by Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama

In the middle of this year’s Summer Game Fest, Geoff Keighley teased a new game with characters from a storied manga artist – and he wasn’t kidding. Sand Land is a new adventure game from Bandai Namco, featuring character design from Akira Toriyama, the man who gave us Dragon Ball’s Goku, the... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-06-08 20:02:42 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bandai namco #chrono trigger #quick tour #release date #manga


APA Report: US Sees Double-Digit Audiobook Sales Growth for 11th Year

The Audio Publishers Association finds in its annual report that audiobook sales generated $1.8 billion in the United States in 2022. The post APA Report: US Sees Double-Digit Audiobook Sales Growth for 11th Year appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-06-01 15:27:14 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #11th year #annual report #publishers association #audiobook


Bloomsbury reports sales surge as people buy books as ‘affordable diversion’

Harry Potter publisher says in challenging economic times books are seen as cheap form of entertainmentBloomsbury Publishing, the home of Harry Potter, has revealed a rise in annual sales as it said people were turning to books as a cheap form of entertainment as finances were squeezed.Sales of... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-05-31 13:38:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #annual sales #bestselling children #latest work #crescent city #originally published #nielsen bookscan #children’s book #harry potter


Illinois set to become first state to end book bans

Governor JB Pritzker expected to sign bill that would block state funding for public libraries and schools that ban booksGovernor JB Pritzker is expected to sign a bill that would make Illinois the first state to legislate to end book bans – by punishing publicly-funded institutions that attempt... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-05-30 10:00:33 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #state legislature #public schools #ban books #public libraries


‘Damn, that fool can write’: how Martin Amis made everyone up their game

He exploded into the tweedy world of literature, a young, pouting and outrageously brash crusader for prose. Our writer remembers her encounters with the novelist, whose smarts and chutzpah confounded his peers‘You’ll be reading me every now and then at least until about 2080, weather... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-05-22 05:00:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #major event #inside story #short-story collections #saturday night #memoir


Kraft increases investment in its digital media mix with a focus on nostalgia and millennial parents

In addition to preparing television and sponsored ads, Kraft has also taken an interest in digital OOH and social media displays to account for how consumer shopping habits have changed. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2023-05-22 04:01:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #millennial parents #digital media


Vice Media files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the latest in a string of digital media setbacks

Vice Media is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the latest digital media company to falter after a meteoric rise Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2023-05-15 11:47:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #vice media #meteoric rise #digital media


'New York Times' reports slower digital subscription growth and weakening ad revenue

The paper has been a bright spot for digital media despite falling ad revenue and a slowing growth rate for new subscribers Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2023-05-10 18:44:39 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bright spot #digital media


Penguin Random House, Sourcebooks Buy Callisto Assets

The largest trade book publisher in the U.S., now the majority owner of Sourcebooks, has funded the publisher's acquisition of the publishing assets of the once high-flying Callisto Media. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-05-10 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #majority owner #publishing assets #trade book


‘Hogwarts Legacy’ adds arachnophobia mode for spider-free gaming

Arachnophobic Harry Potter fans, rejoice. Developer Avalanche Software has added a new accessibility feature to Hogwarts Legacy that removes spiders from the game. The update coincides with the title’s arrival on PS4 and Xbox One today.The Hogwarts Legacy update (build 1140773) launched Thursday... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-05-05 19:42:15 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #static images #july 25th #coolest work #harry potter


Illinois To Become First State to Ban Book Bans

The Illinois Senate has passed HB 2789, a bill whose terms dictate that state funding from libraries that remove books will be withheld. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-05-04 16:31:45 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #state funding #remove books #libraries


Condé Nast Unveils Expanded Digital Video Slate During NewFronts

The digital media company Cond? Nast unveiled a slate of new video offerings, ad products and experiential franchises at its NewFronts presentation this morning in The Spiral at Hudson Yards, furthering its embrace of business lines that extend beyond its core editorial product. Speaking to a... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2023-05-04 14:15:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #newfronts presentation #ad products #business lines #digital media


B.J. Best, Andrew Ervin, and Brittney Morris on Video Games, Storytelling, and the Importance of Play

Writers B.J. Best, Andrew Ervin, and Brittney Morris join co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell live from the Unbound Book Festival in Columbia, Missouri to discuss the narrative realms of video games and the evolving space they inhabit. The group reminisces about their first... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-05-04 08:53:59 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #brittney morris #video games #book festival


Digital content platforms and streamers pitch new ad formats in short and long-form video on NewFronts day two

On IAB NewFronts day two, digital content platforms and streamers pitched new ad formats (with a focus on artificial intelligence and shoppable content) in short-form social video and longer-form TV shows and movies. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2023-05-03 10:01:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ad formats #artificial intelligence #digital content


On creating a board game that is also a work of literature.

Telling good stories in games is really hard. It’s hard in any medium, of course, but games provide a set of challenges over and above those faced by novelists and screenwriters. Take the question of agency—if the player is allowed to make the primary narrative decisions in the game, then the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-05-01 15:00:45 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #novelists


B&N CEO James Daunt to Deliver State of Bookselling Keynote at U.S. Book Show

As part of a two-day program curated by Association of American Literary Agents, Daunt will discuss how the company’s initiatives and plans for the future will impact the publishing industry during an address on Tuesday, May 23. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-05-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book show #publishing industry


Microsoft inks another cloud gaming deal after the UK blocked its Activision takeover

Despite suffering a significant blow this week in its attempt to take over Activision Blizzard, Microsoft still believes it can get the job done. The company has signed a 10-year agreement with Spain-based cloud gaming provider Nware to make PC games it builds in-house available to stream on... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-04-28 17:25:18 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #windows pcs #smart tvs #reports suggest #european commission #dominant position #libraries


The Morning After: Apple wins appeals court ruling against Epic Games

The long-running legal tussle between Apple and Epic Games picked up another ruling, in the former’s favor, although the three-judge panel also upheld a part of the original ruling in Epic's favor. The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling, which rejected most of Epic's... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-04-25 11:16:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #regulatory issues #european commission #web browsers #kindle scribe #multi-column layout #kindle