In the beginning of Steam though, it was just basically DRM; there was very little value to Steam back then. The only upside was: don't stick the disc in the drive at all at all times, just boot said game (even though you still had to often connect to the Net now & then). That was it.
In the beginning, Steam didn't have a lot of the features we've come to now appreciate Steam for - Steam Community Forums, Steam User Reviews (which can be great to slap a company to get them to fix their game, improve their game, make them do better w/ better business practices, object to things, etc.), Big Picture Mode, Steamworks Suite for Multiplayer stuff, Remote Play, Cloud Saves, Community Guides, Steam Controller Support, Steam WorkShop integration, and anything else you can think of that makes Steam as a PC Gaming Service actually Great. Steam has so came a long way since the OG Steam days.
Of course, I will always prefer having offline installers, DRM-FREE, client-app is optional for single-player content, and all of that GOG type of mentality stuff - but if you want modern service and feature-rich service, Steam obliterates all the wannabe's and it ain't even freakin' close. It makes EA desktop app, UbiSoft Connect, Blizzard's App, and all the others look like a freakin' joke.