Valve sends cease and desists to 23 CS:GO skin betting sites

Yesterday, Valve, the developer and publisher of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, issued cease and desist letters to 23 CS skin betting sites. This move marks the beginning of significant changes for the controversial third-party activity. Initially, the legitimacy of these letters was questioned, but Valve has confirmed their authenticity to multiple outlets, and several affected sites have also verified their validity.

According to the letter, these websites violated the "Steam Subscriber Agreement" (SSA) by using Steam accounts for commercial and unauthorized purposes. It further warned that if the use of Steam accounts did not cease within 10 days, Valve would take all necessary steps to terminate those accounts.

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These Counter-Strike websites primarily focus on the betting and trading of in-game skins. Some even offer betting services with odds and payouts for official matches. Valve's crackdown on Counter-Strike gambling websites intensified after controversies surrounding Trevor "Tmartn" Martin and Tom "Syndicate" Cassel and their site, CSGO Lotto, came to light.

The controversy involved false advertising and endorsement, with potential insider trading issues related to CSGO Lotto. Martin and Cassel, both co-owners of the site, promoted its rewards without clearly disclosing their ownership.

Following Valve's announcement to take action against Counter-Strike skin betting websites, many companies have stated their intention to change their operations and services. For example, CSGO500 announced, "Our main goal here at CSGO500 is to provide an enjoyable service for our users that is both legitimate and interactive. This will continue to be our goal, as we plan on adjusting to the upcoming limitations set by Valve."