Updated: 8/1/2025 4:18 p.m. ET: In a statement to Kotaku, a spokesperson for Valve said that while Mastercard did not communicate with it directly, concerns did come through payment processor and banking intermediaries. They said payment processors rejected Valve’s current guidelines for moderating illegal content on Steam, citing Mastercard’s Rule 5.12.7.

“Mastercard did not communicate with Valve directly, despite our request to do so,” Valve’s statement sent over email to Kotaku reads. “Mastercard communicated with payment processors and their acquiring banks.  Payment processors communicated this with Valve, and we replied by outlining Steam’s policy since 2018 of attempting to distribute games that are legal for distribution.  Payment processors rejected this, and specifically cited Mastercard’s Rule 5.12.7 and risk to the Mastercard brand.”

Rule 5.12.7 states, “A Merchant must not submit to its Acquirer, and a Customer must not submit to the Interchange System, any Transaction that is illegal, or in the sole discretion of the Corporation, may damage the goodwill of the Corporation or reflect negatively on the Marks.”

It goes on, “The sale of a product or service, including an image, which is patently offensive and lacks serious artistic value (such as, by way of example and not limitation, images of nonconsensual sexual behavior, sexual exploitation of a minor, nonconsensual mutilation of a person or body part, and bestiality), or any other material that the Corporation deems unacceptable to sell in connection with a Mark.”

Violations of rule 5.12.7 can result in fines, audits, or companies being dropped by the payment processors.

  • PlzGivHugs@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    114
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    edit-2
    2 days ago

    Tl;dr: Mastercard says they didn’t “force” Valve to remove nsfw games. They just told them that if they didn’t remove the games that were complained about by Collective Shout, they’ll block them.

      • HarkMahlberg@kbin.earth
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        16
        ·
        2 days ago

        Unless MC and Visa are run by people who already agree with Collective Shout and are just using them as an excuse to enforce this policy.

          • HarkMahlberg@kbin.earth
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            2
            ·
            2 days ago

            If they do, that includes them. Decision makers at all levels, nobody gets to say “hey I didn’t make Mastercard act this way.” Because the status quo would have been to carry on processing video game payments, even in the face of a minority faction like Collective Shout.

            • AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              2
              ·
              2 days ago

              You’d expect them to put profits above this kind of petty consideration. That would only be valid if the company was owned by a fairly small group.