Valve Steps Up to Digital Gambling Sites

Valve, in the wake of the Counter Strike gambling fiasco that has shaken users all across steam, vowed to crack down on digital gambling sites, putting an end to what was once a sizeable industry within the gaming world.  At the time, I was dubious if it wound amount to anything, as Valve has got nothing if it doesn't have a reputation for being lazy.

Boy, was I wrong.

Valve has stepped up, and sent out Cease and Desist letters to 23 digital gambling sites operating out of Steam, threatening legal actions against these sites for violating their terms of service. Most of these gambling sites were working with CS:GO, but there was a DOTA 2 gambling site in the mix as well. The letter, which was linked above, threatens to take any action to shut down these sites, including and not limited to closing Steam Accounts, if the websites aren't taken down in ten days.

And already, websites are caving: CSGOLOtto.com shut down on July 8 after being cites in a lawsuit filed by one of their users. CSGODouble.com and CSDices.com have already said they'd stop taking money, and CSGOWealth, has taken down their site and issued a not-so-subtle protest against Valve in the process.

Now, is this a permanent solution? Hardly. The website that posted the letter on their Twitter account assured users that they'd be back as soon as they could, so they must already have something planned. If Valve plans to fight this beyond merely sending out a letter and closing Steam Accounts, well... that, we'll have to see. It'd be nice if Valve decided to show some teeth for a change.

We'll have to see how it goes.