The professional CS:GO player Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen (18) wants to sue the operator of the game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive: the Steam giant Valve. A mistake from his youth stood in the way of a lucrative professional career. Unfortunately, however, he chose the wrong company for his lawsuit, the German firm “Valve GmbH.”
This is the issue with the lawsuit: We reported on MeinMMO in March 2020 about the case of the Finn Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen.
At the age of 14, he purchased a second copy of the tactical shooter CS:GO to play on a LAN with a friend. He then sold the account to this friend: however, this friend received a ban through the “Valve Anti-Cheat System.” These VAC bans are permanent and non-negotiable.
Because the friend’s copy was linked to Jamppi’s Steam ID, he has since been considered a cheater by Valve, which has blocked him from pursuing a top-tier professional career. He is not allowed to participate in Valve’s major tournaments.
Jamppi is now of legal age and has developed into a strong player in CS:GO. He was close to actually signing a professional contract as an AWP player with OG. However, this could not happen, as the ban stood in the way.
So Jamppi decided to sue Valve for damages, claiming that due to the unfair treatment, he has lost money and suffered damage.
Jamppi has since signed a professional contract with the team ENCE, a Finnish e-sports organization focused on Finland. There are also sometimes local CS:GO tournaments, like the one from Red Bull recently, that were won by cheaters. But this is not the international career that Jamppi has dreamed of.
Player sues the German Valve, not the American
This is now the problem: As reported by a Finnish site, Jamppi demanded 266,092 euros from Valve. The issue is that he actually wanted to sue the Valve Corporation, which was founded in the USA in 1996. However, he sued Valve GmbH, which was only founded in Germany in 2016.
Valve GmbH, based in Hamburg, manufactures hardware, not software.
Valve GmbH has provided several reasons in a statement why the lawsuit should be dismissed:
- The Finnish court where Jamppi filed his complaint is not actually competent for Valve GmbH because it is based in Germany.
- The plaintiff is not a customer of Valve GmbH at all, as it does not operate in Finland.
- The company has no rights to CS:GO and does not manage the game, the German company did not even exist in 2015.
- Moreover, the player is complaining now 4 years after the ban and wants to appear here as a customer, whereas he is a professional.
- The damage claim is also unfounded because the company is not responsible for how third parties act.
At the moment, it is unclear how the matter will proceed and whether the pro will maintain and continue his lawsuit.
Jamppi apparently wants to achieve that at least the ban is lifted, but he has so far met with a brick wall at Valve.
The e-sport in CS:GO is considered one of the 5 most lucrative gaming e-sports overall. However, it is particularly difficult to earn money in CS:GO if one cannot play at the absolute top level and is dependent on second-tier tournaments.
Therefore, it is also very important for the Finn that the VAC ban is lifted so he can compete with the big guys.
