itch.io

We need to go after Collective Shout and the payment processors in this case. They're overstepping here, not the storefronts. Steam and itch can't really do much if the threat is "do this or you can't sell anything on your platform anymore", other than pivot to crypto which the vast majority of customers are not gonna do.

In the US, there's the "Fair Access to Banking Act".
There's also this petition which everyone can sign: https://www.change.org/p/tell-mastercard-visa-activist-groups-stop-controlling-w..

Holy false equivalence batman

A better example would be "If Jeffrey Epstein forced your father to sell you to him, by threatening to murder your entire family, which man are you more angry at?" and that would still be false equivalence since we're not talking about slavery, SA or murder at all. And I would still go with Epstein, btw.

If itch took down their entire site, way more creators would be affected by this. Changing payment processors would probably not be a great solution either, since it would probably mean higher fees which would be less revenue for itch or the creators.
And then we're not even talking about loss of sales due to people not having their preferred checkout-method. And the very high probability that Collective Shout will also go after these new payment processors.

Yes, itch could've acquiesced with the demand and still spoken out about it firmly, and pointing people in a direction for action against this BS. But Collective Shout are still ultimately to blame, together with our current systems allowing this loophole they've found. We need to make our politicians aware that we find this unacceptable, and that payment processors should not be allowed to dictate stuff like this. Start local initiatives where you live, and spread the word.
If in the US, I've heard you can look up the "Fair Access to Banking Act", also called "Bill s.401". That's a good start.
There's also a petition, https://www.change.org/p/tell-mastercard-visa-activist-groups-stop-controlling-w...