Valve announces SteamOS for "living room machines"

Valve’s invasion of the living room continues with the imminent release of a new operating system designed for big screens.

SteamOS uses Linux technology and is designed to run on devices hooked up to TVs rather than traditional monitors.

It will be available to download "soon", according to Valve, and will be completely free. It will run on "any living room machine".

SteamOS introduces the ability to stream all Windows and Mac games, and a new Family Sharing system that will allow users to play each other’s games while still retaining their own save files and Achievements.

Valve also plans to integrate movie, TV and music services.

The announcement is the first of three in Valve’s plans to bring PC gaming into the living room, following last year’s launch of Big Picture mode. At the time of writing, the next will be revealed in just over 47 hours.

Chances are that this news is the precursor to the long-awaited revelation of the Steam Box, Valve’s standalone gaming device designed to compete with consoles.