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Originally Posted by CaptainHaplo
OK first of all - the "policy" reads as a request. Note the "please" verbage.
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When Steam has a marketshare estimated between 70% and 80%, that "please" becomes "do it, or lose big time."
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Second - anti-trust means a monopoly - nowhere in there does Valve state that early access sales must be through them only. Instead - they ask only that they be allowed to insure that their price matches that of others.
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Steam already is a monopoly, and the Sherman Antitrust Act states anything in restraint of trade is a violation.
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Price matching. So "More>less" doesn't apply - rather, "price=price" does. So where exactly does "anti-trust" apply?
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Actually, both do. Valve is saying early access can be no higher on Steam, which means "Steam price<=price" and "if you let anyone undercut Steam on price, you're in violation, because if they sell for less, we are selling for higher, which we have outlawed." If Valve wanted to do "Steam price=price" without antitrust violation, they would have said "no higher than Steam", which means "Steam price>=price" and "we don't prohibit prices as long as they aren't higher than us".