Valve, the company behind the popular gaming platform Steam, has made changes to its minimum price policy for some currencies other than the US dollar, which may have implications for those selling games and add-ons for less than $5, Engadget reports.

Valve has warned game publishers and developers that if they do not change their prices, their games and downloadable content (DLC) may no longer be available for purchase in certain regions. In addition, these publishers and developers may not be able to offer the same deep discounts as they have in the past.

The main goal of Valve’s revised policy is to bring minimum prices in line with the recommended currency conversion rates that the company provided last October. These guidelines have been updated to take into account the significant fluctuations in the value of some currencies over time.

Тепер Steam є два мінімальні пороги цін:

The minimum base price that can be set for any product on Steam must be at least $0.99 converted according to Steam recommendations.
The minimum transaction amount is 50% of the minimum base price, which allows you to set discounts even on the cheapest products. It is approximately equal to $0.49.

For a product that costs $0.99-$1.98, you can set a discount of up to 50%.
For a product that costs $1.99-$4.98, you can set a discount of up to 75%.
You can set a discount of up to 90% on a product that costs $4.99 or more.

This change requires developers and publishers to rethink how they price their products in certain countries. They should also be strategic about how they offer discounts. For games that are typically priced at $4.99 or less, publishers and developers should ensure that the price does not drop below a certain threshold during retail. To help them manage these changes, Valve provides tools for managing prices and discounts on Steam.

Additionally, this policy change may affect players who create Steam accounts in different countries to take advantage of regional price differences. While blockbuster titles will not be affected by the new thresholds, it may be less feasible for players to change their virtual location to countries such as Turkey and Argentina to receive discounts on indie games and other heavily discounted titles.