Valve launches SteamOS and moves into your living room

After publishing the translation, an already written post on this topic was discovered - here it is . Information, in principle, does not overlap by 100%, although the news is definitely the same. In addition, the link above is narrated in the first person, and here - the translation of the original article. Therefore, the post is not hiding in drafts. - approx. translator

In this long-awaited announcement, the creator of Half Life and Steam is showing its strategy to conquer your living rooms with the new OS based on Linux and designed for TVs.


The game development and digital distribution company has already demonstrated success with its Steam portal. This success is so great that Valve now creates a separate Linux-based operating system based on this software. And not just like that, but in order to overthrow the console and put an ecosystem of personal computers on the throne of home entertainment.

While we were working on moving Steam to living rooms, we concluded that the best solution would be an operating system developed around Steam.

Valve announces on the official SteamOS page .

SteamOS combines robust Linux architecture with experience in creating games for large screens. Soon, this operating system will appear in the public domain for entertainment devices.

The move to create free software is key in the process of seizing power over the living room. This process began a year ago, with rumors that Valve is developing its own hybrid PC and console, called the Steam Box.
These efforts were praised at CES in January, when Valve unveiled the mysterious prototype device. In the meantime, the founder and executive director of Valve, Gabe Newell, spoke about his plans to move to the “big screens”, about the competition that he sees in this area and the danger that Apple carries .
Going to this, however, Newell conducted a series of cuts and restructured Valve. One of those high-profile layoffs was Jerry Ellsworth, developer of controllers for the Steam Box. Employees call this solution "the great purge."
Thus, it turns out that Valve has set the task of creating software as high as the development of the Steam Box, if not even higher. In March, Valve announced that it would launch prototypes of the Steam Box in the next 3-4 months, but now there is no certainty, because organization strategy has changed.
As for SteamOS, it will provide the ability to stream the entire Windows or Mac user’s game library to the TV screen. Also, this OS will include the functions of sharing profiles and access restrictions to fully comply with the requirements for a gaming console in the living room.
SteamOS will also be armed to battle with media giants like Microsoft and Sony who are well prepared in terms of the services offered, such as integrating cable television and streaming football matches online for NFL (the national football league is really a killer feature for Americans translator) . Valve's proposal will include music, movies, and television, although company representatives simply state that it: “... will interact with many media services that you know and love” - and do not provide any details on how it will work .

SteamOS will soon be available for download to simple users and as free licensed software for manufacturers.

Reports Valve.
We can expect new details in the coming days, so the next performance is scheduled for September 25, where the company can present the Steam Box as the basis for the further presentation of SteamOS.