I've noticed this too. My latest purchase being Counter-Strike: Source.

I got the Retail version from Play.com for £14.99 and for that I got CS:S, DoD:S and HL2DM. On Steam, though, you get CS:S alone for £13.99 and if you want the same three games they do the Source Multiplayer Pack (exactly the same three games) but at a cost of £16.99.

As it has been said before, digital distribution costs are fixed by publishers. Unfortunately, until this is fixed, we will be paying premiums for downloaded equivalents of games, videos, music etc compared to boxed versions of the same products bought both online and in retail stores, bearing in mind these store-bought copies can also be digitised and usually don't have drm either.

So why do we bother with digital copies which are limited to certain devices or platforms? (eg itunes movies only work on apple hw/sw)

I've just bought L4D from asda for over £10 less than it is on steam, taking vat into account is one thing but the differences in pricing for Game and Gamestation in the retail shops and online can differ by quite a margin. I like steam but when i can save a fair bit by buying from online retailers I will, sure I have to wait longer to get it but I can wait just a couple days more. The other trouble UK users have with online distribution is the majority of crap ISP's that still insist on rediculous limits for downloads such as 40GB for a month sure its good for light users but if you want to download GTA 4 its gonna cost you over a quarter of your monthly limit. Even then thats before you even have to update the damned thing.

Funny, you'd think you Brits would be used to being overcharged. Watch your government patch that tax loophole so that nobody can gain any benefit.

Keep a stiff upper lip!

...because Play.com have always been cheaper (and you get a box and disc too). Valve may not want to upset the channel, but they're just profiteering when an etailer can sell for a lot less.

Oh, and I've never paid VAT on a Play.com order. They don't have to add it for under a certain price, and the Channel Isles loophole means they don't need to.

Valve do not set the regional prices on Steam, they are set by the publishers.

This has come up several times on the SteamPowered forums, and has been answered in some detail by Valve employees.

It is not a mystery really.

And, personally, having net-based access to my game collection on Steam, wherever I go, is worth more to me than a scratchable/change-disc-every-ten-minutes/lose-down-the-sofa dvd in wasteful packaging. I am more than willing to pay the premium.

So, what got your back up about all this?

F*ck Steam and (itunes) Microsoft Live too. Call me old fashioned but I like my digital stuff (games & music) bought in a brick and mortar shop. They want to stop it and then you only rent games from their servers, aka Steam. Not for this old timer. After they screw enough people around maybe they will wake up.

Plus, you can sell your physical copy on ebay when you have finished the game, or buy a second hand copy to start with.

What a rip off.

The only digital downloads I will buy myself are computer books, because they do actually pass on the cost savings, the rest of them can take their digital dust and fuck off.

Keep in mind this is in the States, but I've done well on pricing with Steam by waiting for sales.
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Left4dead for $37.50 when the going rate was $49.99
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Bioshock for $5 at Xmas. Even in the game stores the lowest I've ever seen it was $10.
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Peggle for $5 when the going rate is $10
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I also buy a fair amount of indie games which usually has good pricing. (Defense Grid, World of Goo, Tank Universal are all fantastic!)

Hi' use this site for the currency calculations...

XE - The World's Favourite Currency and Foreign Exchange Site
Independently ranked as the world's favourite free Internet currency tools and services.

http://www.xe.com

Obviously Steam hates you and wants to kick your dog. I think it is rather ridiculous to think that Steam has it out for the EU crowd just because they can. The EU has some pretty messed up tax laws for foreign companies, maybe you should petition your governments to fix that?

old news check out
http://steamunpowered.eu

EU prices are 30%+ higher on many titles since desember 2008

there is even a price compare engine here
http://steamrepowered.eu

there is also a community group with soon 19k+ members
http://steamcommunity.com/groups/1e1us

If i remember right, a while ago Steam switched from USD to (wherever possible) regional pricing. That was were Steam went downhill. I bought Steam Silver which was $60 (~£30), which was a great deal.

At Call of Duty 4 release though i noticed that when i was not logged in, it would offer me the game for $49.99. When i did it was $69.99. So a $20 difference on digital distribution just because i'm from the UK and not USA? Oddly enough, i still don't own Call of Duty 4, despite being told it is awesome.

Then i started buying things in sterling and any real discount seemed to disappear unless the game you want is on a Steam special. Apart from indy games i rarely use Steam for big purchases unless it is on special.

empire total war was the same aswell. though the tax thing didn't matter when I got it because amazon was cheaper too, by £10 I think.

It seems you pay a premium for digital dist
also
Steam was a lot cheaper before localised pricing

They still think the Pound is much more valuable than the Euro.
Reality: Pound*1.1=Euro
Play.com: Pound*1.3=Euro

Maybe publishers do not want to piss off the channel, and this can be understood.
But the fact that Steam prices are higher non only than play.com but even higher than commercial centers is somethong that I do not understand.
Considering also the DRM limitation of Steam I simply use it for Valve Games only.

Basically it comes down to the fact that the publisher can't piss off the channel, therefore they have to keep the digital prices the same as retail prices. Likewise, anti-virus companies sell their products in their own digital store for the same price as the suggested retail price is cause they don't want to piss off the channel which might stop selling their product and go for some other anti-virus company's product.

I pointed this out to a few of my friends online just a week or so ago.

I'm sure Valve will point to fluctuations in currency, weaker pound against the dollar, blahblahblah, the usual corporate smokescreen when they're caught in a position they can't possibly defend.

This isn't just a fluctuation, or a variation, or a discrepency, or whatever management bull they'll use to try and make it go away, it's bare faced, blatant robbery. Charging, in some cases DOUBLE what Play (And even Amazon) are charging is just indefensible when they don't even give you a physical copy of the media!