It’s really a factually incorrect take. The only reason Microsoft puts its games on Steam is because they have to for their game studios to be commercially viable. They have already tried getting a foothold with the Microsoft/Xbox store and the truth of the matter is that Steam holds all the cards in their overwhelming user base.

Valve is not an extension of Microsoft, they are a company that out-competed them.

I actually find it somewhat surprising that Microsoft is as warm as they are toward Valve. If there is a personal relationship factor, maybe that’s part of it.

But I think another part of it is that Microsoft ultimately makes more money via Steam than if Steam wasn’t a part of their ecosystem.