A few months after Valve is faced with criminal charges in violation of the state gambling laws, the former denies the said accusation stating that there is no factual ground to support it. Valve issued a response as required by the Washington State Gambling Commission and warranted that the said company is willing to work with the latter to determine and shut down offending sites.
The Washington State Gambling Commission sent the company a letter about the issue on Sept. 27 ordering it to stop transferring weapon skins for purposes of gambling. ESPN further reported that the commissioner of the government agency, Chris Stearns, said that unregulated environment will expose players to greater risks if wholly unprotected.
The letter also contains the order to "respond and explain", on or before Oct. 14, how Valve is in compliance with state gambling laws despite all the current gambling controversy. However, during the due date the Corporation stated in a press release that the reply will be provided on Monday because it is still working on it.
Valve has now issued a lengthy letter as a response of the accusations charged by the Washington State Gambling Commission on matters of skin betting. The letter begins in a statement saying that the company does not engage or promote gambling in any way nor facilitate it. Valve also expressed disappointment of the way the Commission went public with the issue given that the accusation has no legal support.
Furthermore, both skin trading and Open ID features of the game are claimed to aid in the performance of illicit activities. However, the company claimed that those services should not be shut down because they are not inherently illegal. It further asserted that those features have substantial benefits not just for Steam customers but also for Steam game-making partners and such are not even directed to gambling with regard to Washington laws. The company also challenged that if it is in contravention with a specific criminal stature or regulation, a citation should be provided to it.
Kotaku reported that the Company is already taking actions against skin betting sites in order to bring them down with the intention of cooperating with the Commission.
