Bergquist shed some light on the recent reflections on Steam, stating that; “Many publishers see a big problem with Steam not being independent. I mean, hypothetically, what happens when the next Valve installment ends up being released the same week as another AAA title from a separate publisher?”
Arguing the case for indepedant services, Bergquist continued: “The real danger for a publisher using Steam, for example, is that they're feeding a competitor with money and resources… What ends up happening is Steam builds an inordinate degree of control over their customer base and future revenues, and I don’t think many publishers are aware of just how much control they actually have.”
Bergquist closes by stating that he agrees with the dangers involved in a digital distribution service closely tied to a developer/publisher previously mentioned by Picthford, and that he believes there is room for more than one service in the marketplace. This story may well be far from over, but you can read the full interview over at Blend Games.
Electronic Theatre will keep you updated with all the latest developments in videogame digital distribution.
