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

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Citing Embargo, Libraries Plan Boycott of Blackstone Digital Audio

A coalition of some 44 public libraries across Washington state is organizing a six-month boycott of Blackstone Publishing's digital audiobooks after the publisher announced last month that it would withhold new release audio titles from libraries for 90 days. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-07-12 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Hearst’s Latest Digital Subs Foray Is $100 Per Year Exercise Videos

Hearst is continuing its moves to find digital subscription revenue in offshoot products with a new streaming video service offering Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2019-07-11 18:30:41 UTC ]
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Hearst’s latest digital subs foray is $100 per year exercise videos

A 20-person team at Hearst Magazines has brought four different consumer products to market since last October. It sees a mandate to serve the needs of its existing audience. The post Hearst’s latest digital subs foray is $100 per year exercise videos appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2019-07-11 04:01:02 UTC ]
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IVP Reports Double-Digit Sales for 2019

IVP has increased its sales over 16% from last year with a mix of old and new bestsellers, a new distribution partnership, and Amazon’s marketing services. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-07-09 04:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S UK buys nine titles in Shannon Messenger series

Simon & Schuster (S&S) Children’s UK has acquired the UK and Commonwealth rights to nine books in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series by Shannon Messenger. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-03 06:53:15 UTC ]
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What we're buying: 'Typeset in the Future'

This week, Senior Editor Kris Naudus takes a look at a book that will please both sci-fi nerds and design geeks. 'Typeset in the Future' explores the typography and design in science fiction movies such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Trek, and more. Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2019-07-01 17:45:00 UTC ]
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S&S Changes Library E-book, Digital Audio Terms

S&S officials confirmed that as of August 1, public libraries will be able to license S&S e-books for two-year terms, on a one copy/one user model, with most “new release” e-books priced between $38.99 and $52.99. Previously, S&S e-books were sold on one-year licenses, though at a... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-07-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Zephyr buys Kat Dunn’s YA debut

Fiona Kennedy, publisher at Head of Zeus’ Zephyr imprint, has acquired a historical adventure YA by debut author Kat Dunn. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-30 19:51:30 UTC ]
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Nielsen Is Partnering With Riot Games to Measure Esports Sponsorships

Nielsen will soon lend even more legitimacy to esports advertising by measuring sponsorship deals through Riot Games. Riot Games, the gaming publisher and esports event organizer, said it will begin working with Nielsen to measure the value of brand deals for Riot's League of Legends leagues and... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2019-06-27 20:44:59 UTC ]
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Firefly buys MG thriller by Eloise Williams

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[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-26 14:37:35 UTC ]
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State school children miss out on author visits, NLT report reveals

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[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-26 04:33:29 UTC ]
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Ckbk launches digital book subscription service for professionals

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[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-24 05:59:01 UTC ]
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Sceptre buys myth-busting Dutch bestseller about the power of numbers

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[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-23 13:54:40 UTC ]
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AT&T casts sponsorship spell over new 'Harry Potter: Wizards Unite' game

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[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-21 21:00:51 UTC ]
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5 Ways Digital Archives Can Supercharge Paywall Revenue

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[ Publishing Executive | 2019-06-21 20:38:36 UTC ]
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Bipartisan Group of News Sites Launch Digital News Alliance for 2020 Election Advertising

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[ Editor & Publisher | 2019-06-21 15:26:03 UTC ]
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Pokemon Go creators release Harry Potter mobile game Wizards Unite

The creators of mobile gaming phenomenon Pokemon Go unleashed a new game on Thursday that features Harry Potter and other characters from the wizarding world made famous in best-selling books and blockbuster movies. Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2019-06-21 12:31:30 UTC ]
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5 Key Takeaways From Reuters’ 2019 Digital News Report

An astonishing 91% of right-leaning Americans have lost faith in the media, according to a study from the Reuters Institute of Digital News and the University of Oxford. Rasmus Kleis Nielsen from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism explained some of the key findings of the report,... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2019-06-20 11:00:53 UTC ]
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Paramount buys film rights to McKinty's The Chain in seven-figure deal

Paramount Pictures has bought film rights to Adrian McKinty’s upcoming thriller The Chain (Orion) in a seven-figure deal. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-06-20 09:51:26 UTC ]
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Russian Book Market Players Explore Digital Serialization

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-06-20 05:30:42 UTC ]
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