How steam economics work

[Rbolsen]

for those of us that don´t live in murica and canada steam prices are actually higher so we pay more for the same content. what do you guys think of this, is it fair?

EDIT: here try these links 

 http://www.pcgamer.com/the-weird-ecomomics-behind-steam-prices-around-the-world/

[Lavachyste]

404 page not found

[Dietrichw]

Ummm bad link and could you add more to the post 

 

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[QueenDemetria]

404 Page not found.

[Jobbe03]

404, but no, of course not.

 

It's always been that way and it's not just in games. 

[Rbolsen]

404 page not found

It should be fixed now

[Sklo]

Like Praise Gabe our savior, have our money.

[scaryjam823]

for those of us that don´t live in murica and canada steam prices are actually higher so we pay more for the same content. what do you guys think of this, is it fair?

EDIT: here try these links 

 http://www.pcgamer.com/the-weird-ecomomics-behind-steam-prices-around-the-world/

Of course it is fair, the game has to travel through more internetz to get to you guys so you have to pay for it.

 

 

/sarcasm

[Lavachyste]

Yeah, I don't care, I like steam anyway. But The price difference always been different, sometimes more than in the US, sometimes less.

[pbenologa]

When steam here converted in peso everything is a little bit less. Like a game that is worth for $40 before, we can buy it in 1600php. Whereas when you conver $40 to php 1790php. 

[Jamdude]

It doesn't matter at all, you can buy games from other sites round the world and get their prices anyway.

[StingBull]

It has to do with the purchasing power. If Brazil were to be charged the same as the USA they would be less likely to buy anything.

[ZeferiniX]

When steam here converted in peso everything is a little bit less. Like a game that is worth for $40 before, we can buy it in 1600php. Whereas when you conver $40 to php 1790php. 

 

I second this. I remember before when I was waiting for the CS:GO to be included in the Flash Sale(which didn't appear at all or maybe I missed it, damn it) last Summer Sale, original cost in USD is I think $15.x(forgot the cents part) which is around P671.17 more or less depending on the cents. Pricing of CS:GO now after steam converted the games to Philippine Peso is P419.95. Quite a huge cut imo.

[Gontier]

This is a poorly worded thread title. This isn't something that is specifically seen on Steam but in general with the wonky 1USD=1EUR. In regards to video games, I have seen a few explanations, some from game developers themselves that I know and generally it's just this way because "everyone else does it" and because people buy the products anyway. Also has to do with region locking as most game codes are universal or by larger regions ie. AMER, EMEA, APJ. People would buy games online for a lower price in another countries currency and sell for profit in another region. There already a number of services that make serious money off this. 

 

There is also some popular belief that Europeans also earn more money. 

[DigitalHermit]

When steam here converted in peso everything is a little bit less. Like a game that is worth for $40 before, we can buy it in 1600php. Whereas when you conver $40 to php 1790php. 

 

Time to invest in Steam cash before the Christmas sale hits...

[LinoLear]

here in indonesia its actually a lot cheaper, with usually 20% cheaper on most games, and up to 45% in some games, comparing it to us dollar.

[mr moose]

In Australia we call this the "fuck you because we can" tax,  there was a senate inquiry into the price discrepancy between America and Australia for hardware, software and some content, basically apple, MS and adobe where summoned to give evidence and they said: yes we do, because we can and then added some lame excuses.

 

We pay on average 50-52% more for everything IT related including content.

[Pestinar]

Yeah i stopped using steam sometime ago. The prices here in Norway are just stupid. When the 60 euro for a triple A game is converted into Norwegian kroner it's about 480-500kr and you can get the same game at retail store for 379 or around 46 euro...

[Rbolsen]

Yeah i stopped using steam sometime ago. The prices here in Norway are just stupid. When the 60 euro for a triple A game is converted into Norwegian kroner it's about 480-500kr and you can get the same game at retail store for 379 or around 46 euro...

i am just wondering how the pricing will be now when we get kr on steam.

[Keudn]

so basically buy all your games from russia via hola?

[decer304]

you americans can stop complaining about high prices. Us australians have to pay wayy more then everyone else for almost everything

[Jaybird]

Neat.

I found this interesting:

"...Russia pirated 63% of its software in 2011, as compared to 19% in the US and 26% in the UK, according to a global study..."

[StingBull]

Neat.

I found this interesting:

"...Russia pirated 63% of its software in 2011, as compared to 19% in the US and 26% in the UK, according to a global study..."

And that's another reason why it has to be cheaper in Russia.

[FearMe]

Steam games are definitely more expensive in europe.. I don't know where that site got it's info.

[dalekphalm]

One thing to consider in regards to the 1 USD = 1 EURO is this:

Taxes

 

Most (all?) EU countries use a VAT system - Value Added Tax. This tax, often as much as 30% or more (I imagine it depends on the specific country) is included in the purchase price.

 

In America (And Canada), we don't use VAT. In Canada we use HST - which is Harmonized Sales Tax (A combination of the old system which was PST + GST - Provincial Sales Tax and Goods and Services Tax). GST is Federal tax that is standard across the country, whereas PST varies per province. The US system is very similar, with a Federal Sales tax and varying State Sales taxes.

 

These figures are applied ONTOP of the sale price.

 

So for example, a 60EURO game on steam already has that tax added on. A $60 game however, has the tax thrown on top.

 

Now, Canada has fairly low sales tax (13% in Ontario), while some EU states have fairly high VAT.

 

Let's assume a 20% VAT, since that seems to be the rough average.

 

60 Euro game

20% Tax included

To find price before tax, we use the following formula:

Total Price / (Tax rate + 1) = Before Tax Price

60 / (0.20) + 1 = Before Tax Price

60 / 1.20 = 50

 

Therefore the price before VAT was 50 Euro

 

Now lets look at Canada

$60 CAD game

13% Tax ADDED to price

Original Price * (Tax rate +1) = Total Price

$60 * (0.13 + 1) = Total Price

$60 * 1.13 = $67.80 CAD

 

Now let's look at the conversion rate between CAD and Euro. Obviously, we all know the Euro is worth more (USD and CAD are fairly equal these days with only a few percent difference).

 

The current exchange rate for 1 Euro to CAD is $1.41085 CAD

We then convert 60 Euro = $84.6686 CAD

 

So this proves that YES there is a discrepancy, and IT IS A PROBLEM, but we must also acknowledge that it isn't as bad as people make it out to be.

 

In reality, it isn't 1 Euro = 1 CAD/USD, but rather 1 Euro = 1.13 CAD. Can we conclude that this is still unfair? I'd say yes we can. Now obviously this will be different if you live in a different Province or in the US, as the tax rates will all be different, but this is a rough guide.