V社解释为何不补贴自家硬件平台
Valve向The Verge发表声明，解释为何不亏本销售Steam Deck掌机或新款Steam Machine游戏设备。V社认为，补贴硬件是为了构建封闭生态系统，与PC平台开放性的核心理念相悖。在开放PC生态中，用户应能自由选择适合自己的设备，而补贴硬件则与此背道而驰。相比之下，微软和索尼以亏本卖主机、靠软件盈利的方式被V社视为一种掠夺性的战略选择。
背景速读
- **Valve** is the privately-held company behind Steam (the dominant PC game store) and games like *Half-Life*. It is not beholden to shareholders, which lets it make long-term bets like this.
- **Steam Deck** (handheld PC, 2022) and the revived **Steam Machines** (living-room PCs running SteamOS/Linux) are Valve's gaming hardware. All are sold at a profit.
- **Sony and Microsoft** traditionally sell consoles at a loss, making money back on game sales and subscriptions. This locks users into closed ecosystems. Valve calls that predatory and incompatible with an open PC platform.
- **Subsidized hardware** = selling below cost to capture customers. The author (John Gruber, Daring Fireball) contrasts this with iPhone carrier subsidies — contracts that guarantee repayment — versus console subsidies, which are pure gambles on how many games you'll buy.