Steam Subscriber Agreement updated for disputes removing the need for individual arbitration

Valve announced a change to the Steam Subscriber Agreement, which has been updated to remove the need for individual arbitration during disputes.

From the announcement:

We’ve eliminated the requirement that disputes be resolved by individual arbitration. As always, we encourage you to contact Steam Support when you have any issues, as that will nearly always be the best way to reach a solution. But if that doesn’t work, the updated SSA now provides that any disputes are to go forward in court instead of arbitration. We’ve also removed the class action waiver, as well as the cost and fee-shifting provisions, that were in prior versions of the SSA.

For many of our customers (including the ones living in the EU and UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Quebec), these updates have limited impact as the arbitration rules did not apply to them even before the update.

This is what the section of the Subscriber Agreement now says:

10. APPLICABLE LAW/JURISDICTION

Most user concerns can be resolved by use of our Steam support site at https://support.steampowered.com/. If Valve is unable to resolve your concerns and a dispute remains between you and Valve, this Section explains how the parties have agreed to resolve it.

For All Subscribers Outside the European Union and United Kingdom:

You and Valve agree that this Agreement shall be deemed to have been made and executed in the State of Washington, U.S.A., and Washington law, excluding conflict of laws principles and the Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, governs all disputes and claims arising out of or relating to: (i) any aspect of the relationship between us; (ii) this Agreement; or (iii) your use of Steam, your Account or the Content and Services. You and Valve agree that all disputes and claims between you and Valve (including any dispute or claim that arose before the existence of this or any prior agreement) shall be commenced and maintained exclusively in any state or federal court located in King County, Washington, having subject matter jurisdiction. You and Valve hereby consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of such courts and waive any objections as to personal jurisdiction or venue in such courts.

If the laws where you live mandate alternative dispute resolution options, you may seek a remedy under those options. If you are a consumer who lives in Russia, you may also seek a remedy with local Russian state courts.

For EU and UK Subscribers:

This Agreement is governed by the law of the country where you have your habitual residence.

In the event of a dispute relating to the interpretation, the performance or the validity of the Subscriber Agreement, an amicable solution may be sought before any legal action. You can file your complaint at http://help.steampowered.com. The European Commission provides an Online Dispute Resolution website for EU consumers at https://ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr. Participation in this website is not available to US companies, which is why Valve is not registered there. However, insofar as your complaint concerns the behavior of Valve’s data protection representative Valve GmbH you can file your complaint there.

In the event that an Alternative Dispute Resolution Procedure fails, or if either Valve or you prefer not to resort to Alternative Dispute Resolution, you may bring proceedings in the courts of the place where you are domiciled.

You can view the original details on the Wayback Machine Archive.

From my admittedly limited legal knowledge, this seems like a good change for anyone who has a dispute with Valve, since individual arbitration often gives a lot of the power to companies and not consumers.

You can view the Steam Subscriber Agreement for the full text.