Electronic Arts is Europe's number one publisher for 2009, reclaiming the top market share spot which it lost to Nintendo last year.
Despite this, the company says it's "disappointed" with the games market's performance in the last 12 months as box sales are actually down rather than up.
Senior VP of European publishing, Jens Uwe Intat told MCV: "I have to say we've been a little bit disappointed. When we were planning 2009 we were looking at market growth of around 5 per cent in packaged goods, but what we've seen is a decrease of about 10 per cent.
"But, at the same time, we're very happy because in this shrinking market we increased our share and so now we are back to the leading position again in Europe, which is a nice place to be. We actually lost it to Nintendo in 2008 but we've gained it back and we'll have to see if we can hold it until Christmas, but we're confident we can."
Intat said sales of EA Sports Active, The Sims 3, Need for Speed Shift, FIFA 10 and Dragon Age helped it claim top European market share, which is up two points at 19 percent.
Ditto on both counts, Dajmin. I am surprised to find myself cheering EA onwards! Considering 2009 also saw the worst financial meltdown in 80 years - which I suspect EA wasn't planning for - the figures cited are understandable.
They shouldn't be dissapointed especially the financial situation the world is in right now. A small percentage lower is still good news. It could have been much larger.
Excellent. I've been championing EA's turnaround for some time, and over the last couple years they have consistently been my favourite publisher.
Things are looking good going into next year as well, with Mass Effect 2, Dante's Inferno and Battlefield BC 2 both looking solid in the first quarter of 2010.
Well done EA. Your transformation from money grabbing zealots into a publisher more interested in putting out quality product is not only commendable, but serves as a great example of what happens when the consumer is put first.
oh what short memories you all have. About 12-18 months or so ago I used to attempt to try and stick up for EA. Having worked there I felt i was in a position to say "the staff work hard, many best in the business, they really do listen to the public, they try and squeeze the best out of usually very short dev times, all other publishers you "admire" would kill to be in EA's position" and all I ever got was abuse on here. Usually about how they are ruining blah blah blah all the staff are idiots etc etc. Oh and now you have all decided they are "great". What a joke. Maybe you should know something about the subjects you cast judgments about instead of blurting out the usual bile on here.
Its nice to see them rewarded for overturning their old franchises and brining in a healty amout on new IPs onto the table over the last year(s). Hear that Nintendo and Activison 'NEW' Look it up...
oh what short memories you all have. About 12-18 months or so ago I used to attempt to try and stick up for EA. Having worked there I felt i was in a position to say "the staff work hard, many best in the business, they really do listen to the public, they try and squeeze the best out of usually very short dev times, all other publishers you "admire" would kill to be in EA's position" and all I ever got was abuse on here. Usually about how they are ruining blah blah blah all the staff are idiots etc etc. Oh and now you have all decided they are "great". What a joke. Maybe you should know something about the subjects you cast judgments about instead of blurting out the usual bile on here.
Whoops! Excuse me. Let me just pick myself up after tripping over your soap box....
Now where were we? Ah yes! EA. While I do think EA appears to have been improving it's modus operandi this past year or two - which I laud them for - I have no illusions. They are in it for the money (it's business after all,) and I suspect that the money is still the trumping factor although quality now has more to say than in previous years. That EA also seems to be willing to ease up on its DRM practices on some of its titles with certain developers (ex. BioWare) bodes well, and thankfully so because the DRM they were using as recently as earlier this year is - to put it bluntly - f**king atrocious!
EA is one a better path now than it has been in years IMO, yet the glow of its halo is also helped by the increasingly dark shadow cast by Activision led by the deplorable Bobby Kotick. The troops on the ground and behind the scenes at both EA and Activision may be decent, hard working, talented folk by and large, but it does not remove the stains their overseers have brought upon them and the company name(s) they are associated with.
oh what short memories you all have. About 12-18 months or so ago I used to attempt to try and stick up for EA. Having worked there I felt i was in a position to say "the staff work hard, many best in the business, they really do listen to the public, they try and squeeze the best out of usually very short dev times, all other publishers you "admire" would kill to be in EA's position" and all I ever got was abuse on here. Usually about how they are ruining blah blah blah all the staff are idiots etc etc. Oh and now you have all decided they are "great". What a joke. Maybe you should know something about the subjects you cast judgments about instead of blurting out the usual bile on here.
Short memories?
People are saying 'I'm glad they're not as crap as they used to be.' The whole point is they remember what they were like and are glad they have changed.
Whether other publishers would kill to be like one of the biggest publishers in the world is not overly relevant.
lol... yeah me and my soapbox. Take a look at yourselves. The closest 99% of you have been to games development is in a shop buying a game yet you proclaim to be the all knowing experts on the subject. It's very easy to sit there and knock everything a company does but you haven't the feintest ideas really as to how it all works. Thinking any publisher and developer doesn't envy EAs position is pretty nieve. Look at what has become of your "favourites" all mimicking EAs turn around of product timeline, buying up of devs, rushing product to market for yearly updates. The industry is now all about franchise and getting as much millage as possible from it. Yep all pushed by stock holders eager for a return... and no not really interested in the progression of gaming... a pretty sorry state tbh but there you go. You can all just carry on picking holes in the nominated "bad company" who "spoil everything" in your little nerdy world of 15 years ago.
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