Paid Mods on Steam - Why Valve needed to end it

[TronFAQ]

This video is a bit of a deperature from the norm on the LDSO YouTube channel. But, I thought it was important enough to make. I mean, nowadays, modding is pretty much what LDSO is all about.

Valve started a trial of paid mods for Skyrim, in the Steam Workshop. If it had succeeded, it would have meant most mods would eventually become paid on Steam. It also probably would have hurt other sites hosting mods, because a lot of mod authors would then jump ship to Steam.

Right after I recorded this video, Valve dropped paid mods from the Steam Workshop. Rather than scrap the video, I decided to upload it anyway, because it explains what I think was wrong with Valve's implementation and how it could have been improved.

You may want to stick around until the end of the video, where I make what many would consider a controversial statement regarding whether modders should expect to earn money from their work.