Stardock's Impulse program effectively functions as Stardock's online store. I've always had a soft spot for it because it doesn't require you to use it to gain access to your games. You certainly can do so, but if you choose you can forget Impulse exists at all after you have downloaded the game. There is no requirement that you have the Impulse program connected to the internet in order to run games, either.
With that said, Impulse is clearly in a perilous position if for no other reason than it isn't Steam. This year, there were some unexpected tidbits in the Customer Report.
One of the more unexpected pieces of information was that Stardock has dropped its attempts to keep pricing flat between different regions. This has been a point of contention among some gamers, particularly in Europe, who find themselves paying much more for the same game than their friends in the States. According to Stardock, they have dropped their "one world, one price" policy because many game companies simply refused to sell their titles on Impulse if they couldn't set the pricing however they liked for each region. And since Stardock wasn't offering those titles, gamers went elsewhere to purchase them. This is important news for gamers because it shows that an end to region-specific pricing isn't going to happen because of retailer activism.
Another interesting tidbit is that Impulse has been forced not to carry some titles because those titles used Steamworks DRM. Once this happens, the game is only going to work with Steam no matter where you purchase it. This would require Impulse to install a competitors online storefront to sell certain games. This includes games like Dawn of War II. To be frank, this practice seems somewhat monopolistic on Valve's part. I'm calling it now - in ten years Valve is going to be sued by the FTC for monopolistic practices.
