One of the many uses of a personal computer (PC) is to play video games, a form of interactive
entertainment. The way PC users purchase video games to play on their machines has
dramatically changed as a result of the internet. Since the late 1990s, fewer and fewer PC games
are purchased physically in brick-and-mortar stores. Instead, for the last ten years the
overwhelming majority of PC games have been purchased digitally via the internet and
downloaded to play on the buyer’s machine. Surveys increasingly demonstrate that most PC
gamers would never switch back to buying physical copies of games as they value the ability to
browse, purchase, and quickly start playing games without leaving home.
There are two ways to digitally purchase and download PC games via the internet. First, PC
gamers can go directly to the websites of thousands of video game publishers. In 2023, this
method was used for 58% of all PC games purchased digitally worldwide, with each of the
individual websites accounting for a small share of the overall amount. The remaining 42% of
digital sales and downloads of PC games were via Vapour, an online video games store owned
by Alfa and available throughout the EU. Alfa also creates fantasy role-playing games for PC,
particularly its UltimateOdyssey series. Alfa originally created Vapour as a platform just for selling
its UltimateOdyssey games via the internet, but since 2004 it has allowed other publishers to also
sell their PC titles via Vapour. Gamers appreciate that they can purchase almost every PC game
on Vapour, without trawling through thousands of publisher websites to directly download them.
Despite having to pay Alfa a fee for each sale via Vapour and agree to several conditions,
publishers also recognise that selling their games on Vapour is necessary to reach the biggest
audience. Nevertheless, some publishers are critical of how Vapour has been run recently.
Bravo is a games publisher that, like Alfa, specialises in developing fantasy role-playing games
for PC. In summer 2023, Bravo released its newest game, Angelo, for sale directly through its
own website and also on Vapour. On the day that Angelo was released, Bravo noticed that the
Vapour homepage featured a huge advertisement for Alfa’s UltimateOdyssey PC games series
that covered most of the screen. This was to celebrate the 36th anniversary of the first game in
the series being released and lasted for 3 days. During this period Angelo was displayed much
further down the Vapour homepage, which required scrolling to locate. Angelo was bought by
considerably fewer gamers than Bravo had anticipated, not helped by negative reviews of the
game by journalists. During the anniversary promotion, Alfa sold 2% more UltimateOdyssey
games than usual. Bravo blames Alfa for the commercial failure of Angelo and has complained to
the European Commission.
Charlie planned to release its first ever video game, the PC fantasy role-playing game
Baldrick’sDoor, in winter 2023. As an unknown games developer, Charlie recognised that only
selling Baldrick’sDoor on its own website would not reach many gamers, so approached Alfa
about also selling it via Vapour. Charlie indicated that it was willing to accept Vapour’s standard
terms and conditions for sale, including the fee for each sale and the obligation not to tell potential
purchasers via Vapour if Baldrick’sDoor was cheaper to purchase directly on Charlie’s own
website. In response, Alfa said that it would not allow Baldrick’sDoor to be sold on Vapour as it
felt that some of the game’s content was too adult and would undermine Alfa’s reputation as a
family-friendly gaming company if children downloaded it. Charlie has therefore not yet released
Baldrick’sDoor, but has complained to the European Commission. In the meantime, Alfa’s newest
entry in the UltimateOdyssey series was released in winter 2023 – when Baldrick’sDoor was
scheduled to come out – and became the biggest-selling PC game of the year.
Advise Alfa as to whether its conduct may amount to an abuse of dominance pursuant to
Article 102 TFEU.
This is a problem question which requires an understanding of the law and ability to break
down the issues presented one by one and apply the law
OSCOLA refrencing
no more than 2000 words
bibliography required
I have attached sources, guidance, and examples to tackle the question
