Game developers on Steam started receiving mass mail with offers to buy rights to their projects for just $100. Posts with the name of the taйтla are mainly aimed at games with low sales. Many creators took the proposal as offensive: even a failed project is months of work, and the amount coincides with Valve’s non-refundable deposit for publication, which brings to mind cynical reckoning with desperate authors.

Concerns are heightened by the fact that successful projects with high ratings have also been targeted. Experts warn: the scheme may be fraudulent - after obtaining permissions, attackers are able to insert malicious code into game files. Steam has already recorded instances of imprudery spreading through seemingly legitimate projects, making such proposals potentially dangerous.

There is also an alternative version: the buyer can be a legal aggregator that buys undervalued taitos, minimally refines them and monetizes them through advertising. However, until the sender’s identity is established, developers are advised to ignore such emails. Even if the offer is not a fraud, transfer of rights without legal verification may result in loss of control over intellectual property.