1. United States
2. Va.
3. Letter

Payment processing giants Visa and Mastercard have pressured major digital game storefronts like Steam and itch.io to remove certain titles based on subjective moral judgments. This corporate censorship of legal content under the guise of puritanical standards infringes on creative freedom and compromises the open nature of these platforms. While businesses have acceptable use policies, enforcing broad ethical restrictions on artistic expression by payment processors overstepping their roles sets a concerning precedent that stifles diverse perspectives. Preserving a neutral approach and respecting the curation decisions made by the storefronts themselves is crucial to upholding free speech and fostering an inclusive environment for creators. A reevaluation of these overreaching policies is necessary to prevent normalization of payment companies dictating what art is permissible on open platforms.