Valve rolling out game lending feature with Steam Family Sharing

Valve has announced it is rolling out a new game library lending service on its Steam platform, which will allow up to ten authorized devices to share the same library of games. Dubbed Steam Family Sharing, the system is designed to accommodate asynchronous Steam library access across multiple shared computers. If two users attempt to play from the same library at the same time, the borrowing player will be prompted to either quit their current game or buy a separate copy. "Our customers have expressed a desire to share their digital games among friends and family members, just as current retail games, books, DVDs, and other physical media can be shared," said Valve's Anna Sweet, in conjunction with the announcement. "Family Sharing was created in direct response to these user requests." The Family Sharing feature does not extend to region-based restrictions or titles which require third-party keys or subscriptions. The feature is soon to enter limited beta.