On 20 January, the EC has fined various big players in the EU gaming industry: Valve, owner of online PC gaming platform “Stream” and the five publishers Bandai Namco, Capcom, Focus Home, Koch Media and ZeniMax, for the amount of EUR 7.8 million for violating EU competition rules. Stream is one of the world’s largest online PC video gaming platforms and offers more than 35,000 games worldwide. The companies have been found guilty of “geo-blocking” practices by restricting cross-border sales of certain PC video games on the basis of the geographical location of users within the EEA.[1]

[1] European Commission Press Release of 20 January 2021, ‘Commission fines Valve and five publishers of PC video games € 7.8 million for “geo-blocking” practices’.