No FIFA 19? EA to End Annual Releases In Favor Of Subscription Model?
Electronic Arts Inc. Chief Executive Officer Andrew Wilson said Bloomberg there may soon come a time when the video-game publisher doesn't release a new annual version of hits such as FIFA 18 and Madden NFL 18 and relies instead on online updates or subscriptions.
In some markets, the company has already changed the away of releasing their games. Wilson said in Korea and China, EA prefers to incrementally change a core sports game like FIFA with regular updates, with big new "code drops" coming every four years or so instead of annually.
EA Sports to Release no More Annual New FIFA in Favor of Subscription Model?
"There's a world where it gets easier and easier to move that code around, where we may not have to do an annual release," Wilson told Bloomberg TV host Emily Chang on her show "Studio 1.0." "We can really think about those games as a 365-day, live service."
"The greatest disruptor to the consumption of entertainment media in the last five years has been the combination of streaming plus subscription,” Wilson said. "It's changed the way we watch television. It's changed the way we listen to music. It's changed the way I read books."
Electronic Arts already offers a mobile version of Madden, which has been released three years ago and since then be updated at the beginning of every season. Since 2014, the company has offered EA Access, a $5-a-month service that allows customers access to a library of games. New titles are added about six months after their initial release.
How would feel about an annual subscription instead of annual releases? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
