[paulmd]

It’s entered the public consciousness that these keys exist but they aren’t nearly as unlimited as you think.

> Default Release (or standard release): This is the most common type of key on Steam, which is usually tied to a Steam store or retail Steam Key package. These keys are appropriate for retail boxes or sales on other digital stores. Customers can activate this type of Steam Key at any time, but the product will unlock only after it has been released on Steam. Games and applications launching on Steam may receive up to 5,000 Default Release Steam Keys to support retail activities and distribution on other stores. After that, all Steam Key requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. There is no guarantee that you will be provided additional keys.

Steam is not there to be a free CDN for you; it’s one thing if it’s 5-10% of your sales or for charity like humble bundle, it is NOT unlimited and valve will refuse if you are abusing it.

Moreover this also has to be viewed in the context of valve’s forced “most favored nation” clause - if you undercut steam on the site they will reduce the price on steam accordingly, and if you still are abusing the key system they will stop granting you keys.

Again: steam’s business model wouldn’t work if they were being a cdn for people who don’t even pay for them. That’s not at all how it works, you are misinformed if that’s what you’re suggesting/implying. Sure, they allow some offsite sales… which must be at the same price as on steam, and they can “adjust” your revenue accordingly if you do the thing you are implying.