Who issue the Steam keys? Steam or publishers/devs

Greenheart Games
#1

I just had an argument about who actually provide the Steam keys, and I need some help setteling it.

Opinion A) Steam issue the keys through their key servers. Other keystores can buy bundles for resale from Steam. (Not through the client, obviously)

Opinion B) Keys are issued by the publishers and the devs, who provide Steam with keys for their servers. Publishers and devs are at liberty (rules may apply) to issue Steam keys for resale, to other resellers.

I’m on team B, arguing that no publisher or dev would let any reseller (in this case, Steam) just issue keys as they please, and by that, lose control with their product.

Can anyone shed a light?

#2

Who really gives out the keys is the distributor which is Fastspring if I remember correctly.

So you are kind of right on B but not all the way there simple way to put it is the devs only hand out keys on the windows store version and they let the reseller (Fastspring not Steam) give out the keys to the people who did not buy the game off the windows store but off the site.

This is from my understanding this is still the best person to ask @PatrickKlug