Valve Class Action Alleges Illegal Gambling on Steam

A class action lawsuit alleges that Valve Corporation, which makes video games and runs the popular online gaming platform Steam, has knowingly allowed and profited from illegal and underage gambling on its video games.

The Valve illegal gambling class action lawsuit asserts that gambling on video games sports, or “eSports” has grown in recent years into a “multi-billion dollar business” with its own professional players, endorsements, and televised events.

The complaint states that just like regular sports competitions, betting on eSports is also growing, with upwards of 3 billion people wagering “an estimated $2.3 billion” on eSports in 2015 alone.

The class action points out that “however, unlike traditional sports, the people gambling on eSports are mostly teenagers.”

The class action complaint contends that in 2013 Valve intentionally created a market for “skins,” or pictures, of firearms and other weapons in its first-person shooter game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO).

These “skins” appear randomly in the game, have varying degrees of rarity, and can be bought and sold online using real currency, according to the complaint.

Thus, the class action contends, the “skins” act like casino chips when they are used for betting on matches in Counter-Strike, and Valve earns a 15 percent fee on each sale of a “skin” on Steam.

The Steam illegal gambling class action lawsuit alleges that Valve supports the market for illegal gambling of its “skins” through its Steam video game platform.

People who want to play Counter-Strike online with other people use the Steam platform, where they can create an account which keeps track of their scores and “skins.”

The complaint asserts that those Steam accounts can be used to enter third-party gambling sites. The lawsuit states that users on the website CS:GO Lounge can bet “skins” on matches of professional players in Counter-Strike.

Users who win can then sell their “skins” on third-party sites such as OPSkins to earn real money. The class action alleges that other websites—such as CS:GO Diamonds, CS:GO Lotto, and Skin Arena—allow users to wager “skins” on traditional casino-style games or lotteries.

Valve knowingly allows and supports these third-party sites to link to users’ Steam accounts and use Steam software to promote this unregulated and illegal gambling, the class action lawsuit contends.

Moreover, the complaint notes that Steam is aware that most of its users are teenagers, and none of these third-party websites have age verification blocking underage users from gambling.

Plaintiff C.B. states that her minor son, N.B., purchased Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and set up a Steam account. The class action lawsuit alleges that N.B. then purchased “skins” multiple times and, without C.B.’s knowledge, bet them through those third-party websites and lost “the real world cash value of those skins.”

C.B. contends that had she known N.B. was using those “skins” for gambling, she would never have allowed their purchase in the first place.

The class action asserts that Valve violated Florida consumer protection laws and federal anti-racketeering statutes.

The complaint requests to certify a Class of all persons in the U.S. whose money was used to purchase “skins” from Valve through a Steam account. The class action seeks damages and restitution for such purchases, as well as a court order stopping the illegal gambling practices.

Plaintiff C.B. is represented by D. Todd Mathews of Gori Julian & Associates, P.C., Melissa R. Emert and Patrick K. Slyne of Stull, Stull & Brody, and Jasper D. Ward IV, Alex C. Davis, and Patrick Walsh of Jason Ward PLC.

The Valve Video Game Illegal Gambling Class Action Lawsuit is C.B. v. Valve Corporation, Case No. 0:16-cv-61561, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.