It uses their API to trade and sell the skins. They are in total control of what happens with them. There are many ways they could stop them, but they don’t want to because it makes them money. They want to be seen acting like they’re trying to stop them, but without actually doing anything impactful.
They could also easily do some analysis of trades and see which accounts are owned by the gambling sites and ban them, and nuke their inventory. They have full access to the data of who traded what when with whom. With some statistical modeling and maybe some fake trades, it’d be easy to figure out. They won’t even try.
As long as Steam allows skins trading these sites will exist. I can’t see them removing this feature from their community because of activity off their platform.
Locking a trading account and nuking the inventory just means that one site will shut down - the operator will likely just set up a new one and a while bunch of users will be angry at Valve.
If enough money is at stake Valve might even find themselves sued by the site operators. “Tortious Interference” is what it’s called here.
If consenting adults enter into agreements outside of Steam, what business is it of Valve’s to interfere?
It uses their API to trade and sell the skins. They are in total control of what happens with them. There are many ways they could stop them, but they don’t want to because it makes them money. They want to be seen acting like they’re trying to stop them, but without actually doing anything impactful.
They could also easily do some analysis of trades and see which accounts are owned by the gambling sites and ban them, and nuke their inventory. They have full access to the data of who traded what when with whom. With some statistical modeling and maybe some fake trades, it’d be easy to figure out. They won’t even try.
I’m not sure they’d want the legal hassle.
As long as Steam allows skins trading these sites will exist. I can’t see them removing this feature from their community because of activity off their platform.
Locking a trading account and nuking the inventory just means that one site will shut down - the operator will likely just set up a new one and a while bunch of users will be angry at Valve.
If enough money is at stake Valve might even find themselves sued by the site operators. “Tortious Interference” is what it’s called here.
If consenting adults enter into agreements outside of Steam, what business is it of Valve’s to interfere?