A study of 7,375 games sold through Steam identified four approaches to international pricing, ranging from following the platform’s recommendations to setting markedly different prices across markets and titles. The findings help explain why an identical download can carry different prices around the world.
Tomohiro Murakami and Mitsuo Yoshida of the University of Tsukuba examined pre-discount prices from 268 publishers across eight markets. Their Journal of International Marketing study was published online on August 21, 2026, using prices collected in August and September 2023.
Average prices in Brazil were approximately 128% of Steam’s recommendations, while India’s were about 130%, according to the university’s research announcement. In other words, prices were roughly 28% and 30% above the respective regional benchmarks, not above American prices.
The comparisons show how publishers use their discretion within a shared marketplace. They do not establish that charging above the recommended price produces higher profits or that those historical gaps remain in place today.
What is regional pricing?
Regional pricing means setting different prices for a product or service according to the country or market where it is sold. It can account for local purchasing power, competition, taxes and other commercial conditions.
Converting a dollar price into rupees at the prevailing exchange rate does not tell a publisher whether Indian customers can comfortably afford it. Purchasing power concerns what money can buy locally, which is a different question from its foreign-exchange value.
The practice is related to price discrimination, in which sellers charge different prices to different customer groups. A lower regional price may attract buyers who would not purchase at a uniform global price, although it also reduces revenue per copy before other adjustments.
Publishers used four pricing approaches
The researchers grouped publishers by how their prices differed from Valve’s regional recommendations. The study covered Brazil, China, France, India, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States.
- Benchmark followers stayed close to the platform’s recommended prices.
- Calibrated adjusters used the recommendations as a reference but made more modest adjustments.
- Emerging-market premium seekers priced above guidance in markets including Brazil and India while remaining closer to it in advanced economies.
- High-variance portfolio strategists showed larger differences across countries and game titles.
Publishers affiliated with large gaming companies were more prevalent in the fourth group. The classification describes pricing behavior; it does not demonstrate that a particular company’s management intended to pursue every characteristic of its group.
Nor does the Brazil and India result mean publishers ignored purchasing power entirely. Steam’s regional benchmark was itself the reference being exceeded. A price above that benchmark could still be lower than a direct dollar conversion.
Steam provides guidance, not a mandatory price
Steam, operated by Valve, leaves publishers responsible for choosing their prices. Its current Steamworks pricing documentation lists 37 currencies and four regional groups, with three optional conversion methods.
One converts a chosen US dollar price using exchange rates. Another uses purchasing-power data. A third combines exchange rates, local purchasing power and the expected cost of comparable entertainment products.
These are reference tools, not compulsory prices. They also describe the current system, not necessarily the precise guidance publishers saw when the researchers collected their 2023 sample.
For a publisher, the commercial calculation includes how strongly sales respond to price, known as price elasticity of demand. A lower price needs enough additional purchases to compensate for the smaller amount received per sale. The study’s price classifications do not reveal that sales response.
Currency movements add another decision. Leaving a local price unchanged after depreciation may reduce its dollar-equivalent proceeds. Raising it can affect affordability and promotions: Steam says an increase in any currency triggers a 30-day cooldown on submitting discounts.
Taxes and country restrictions complicate comparisons
A currency converter alone cannot produce a fair checkout-price comparison. Steam’s tax documentation explains that some countries’ prices include consumption taxes, while applicable US and Canadian sales taxes are added at checkout.
Consider a hypothetical price equivalent to $60 that includes 20% tax. Its price before that tax is $50, not $48, because the tax is calculated on the pretax amount. Comparing it with a $60 price before tax would compare different amounts retained before tax.
Consumers also cannot assume that seeing a lower foreign price means they can purchase at it. Steam’s store-country rules tie the account’s store to its country. Updating it after a move requires a payment method from the new country, and changes are limited to once every three months.
Such controls help keep regional markets separate. Without separation, buyers accessing lower-priced markets can make it harder for a seller to maintain different prices. The research recognizes cross-border purchasing risk but does not measure publishers’ losses from it.
Listed prices are only part of the business result
The research examined ordinary prices before discounts. A customer purchasing during a sale may pay much less, and a publisher’s high list price does not establish its average transaction price.
Tax, refunds, chargebacks and the platform’s revenue share also separate the displayed price from the publisher’s proceeds. Valve describes those adjustments in its financial documentation. Comparing list prices alone cannot establish which market or pricing strategy is most profitable.
Businesses selling software, subscriptions or online courses face similar choices about affordability and consistency. The gaming categories offer a way to examine their own pricing policies, but the study did not test those industries.
For a publisher reviewing regional prices, the missing information is commercial: copies sold, discount participation, net receipts and how customers respond after a change. The Tsukuba study maps pricing patterns across eight markets in 2023. It leaves open whether following Steam’s guidance, or departing from it, delivered better returns.
