John Riccitiello Says the Future Is in Digital Distribution

Electronic Arts is one of the biggest publishers in the videogame business and John Riccitiello, the chief executive officer of the company, is one of the people most concerned with the future of the industry and with how customers will be getting their gaming fix in the coming years. And it seems that he envisions a future where videogames are no longer sold in a box and might not even be mainly developed for the PC or the gaming consoles like the Xbox 360 from Microsoft, the PlayStation 3 from Sony, or the Nintendo Wii.

The CEO told Fox News, in an interview with Liz Claman, that putting a stronger focus on games which were distributed via download would make up for the losses which traditional retail had suffered during 2009 and would offer a model for how publishers would be working in the future.
 
Moreover, he believes “The other end of the world, online games that you download, games you get by the way of iPhone for example, that totally digital business is up so strong that it’s off-setting the challenge we see at retail,” adding that “There are probably more people enjoying games on mobile devices than all the consoles put together.”

Riccitiello has also stated that “The bulk of video games, like Beatles: Rock Band, are going to pick up in a big way before the next holiday. I want to point out the number one grossing application on iPhone now is Beatles: Rock Band.” While the new title from Harmonix and MTV Games has been doing better than its Guitar Hero 5 rival, Electronic Arts is hoping for more sales coming in November and December, generated mainly by people looking for interesting gifts for Christmas. Electronic Arts has not confirmed whether it will make a profit in the current fiscal year.