14 DAY TRIAL // Video game publisher Electronic Arts announces that for the first quarter of the current fiscal year, more than 76 percent of its revenue was linked to digitally distributed video games, in a period when the company delivered a limited number of retail launches.
Revenue was evaluated at 495 million dollars (420 million Euro) for the period that ended on June 30, above the guidance that it issued at the beginning of the year and one third more than during the same period of 2012.
Frank Gibeau, who leads the Labels division at the company, says that the company has big plans for digital distribution.
He tells investors that, “It’s not an experiment. It’s a full commitment. We burned the ships and marched inland. About 76 % of our revenue this quarter was digital, not disc-based. We’re off to the races.”
The executive believes that the company’s plans will be boosted by the solid streaming and cloud capabilities of the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony.
The strong mobile market growth in Asia will also help Electronic Arts deliver more games via its Origin and associated services rather than via boxes sold in brick and mortar stores.
Gibeau adds, “We’re seeing audiences that are vastly bigger. Our creative times are intrigued by designing games for mobile devices. The touch screen, the technology — the technology on the next wave of tablets is going to be near-console-level in terms of graphics performance.”
Electronic Arts has recently had to drop its long-running association with the NCAA, which will affect the future of its college-based American football simulation.
The company has a number of big titles set to launch in the coming months, including Madden NFL 25, FIFA 14 and Battlefield 4, all of which will also include versions for the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4.