Bloomberg Report Reveals Alleged Valve-Ubisoft Clash Over Rainbow Six Siege Pricing

Valve's dominance in the PC gaming market has long been a subject of debate, with Steam continuing to hold a commanding lead over competing digital storefronts. While the company has faced numerous legal challenges over the years, a recent Bloomberg report offers a rare glimpse into how far Valve may have gone to protect its position.

According to the report, Valve and Ubisoft became embroiled in a dispute several years ago over the pricing of Rainbow Six Siege, one of Ubisoft's most successful live-service titles.

At the time, Ubisoft was operating its own launcher, UPlay, which was later rebranded as Ubisoft Connect in 2020. The conflict reportedly began after Ubisoft launched a particularly aggressive discount for Rainbow Six Siege through its platform, offering players a deal that significantly undercut prices elsewhere.

Bloomberg claims Valve quickly intervened, demanding that Ubisoft change the promotion. The publisher was allegedly given just 24 hours to adjust the pricing, with Valve threatening to remove Rainbow Six Siege from Steam if the issue was not resolved.

The stakes were particularly high for Ubisoft. Rainbow Six Siege has become one of the company's biggest commercial successes, generating billions in revenue and maintaining a strong player base nearly a decade after launch. Ubisoft previously revealed that the tactical shooter ranks among the highest-earning franchises in the company's history.

Steam remains a key platform for the game as well. Even today, Rainbow Six Siege continues to attract tens of thousands of players on Valve's storefront, with daily concurrent player peaks hovering around 75,000 users.

The reported dispute has reignited discussions surrounding Steam's influence over PC game distribution and whether Valve's market position gives it excessive leverage over publishers. While the allegations stem from court documents and reporting cited by Bloomberg, the story offers another example of the ongoing scrutiny facing one of the gaming industry's most powerful companies.