My Take on EA CEO John Riccitiello's Resignation - Hurricanes919's Blog

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My Take on EA CEO John Riccitiello's Resignation

Posted on March 21, 2013 at 05:28 AM.

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Does EA finally see the light?

I saw on Reddit and Operation Sports over the last couple of days that EA's CEO John Riccitiello has resigned after the company came in under financial expectations for the fiscal year. I'll be honest, I don't know if EA has had successive years of missing financial goals because I haven't done the research and I'm not going to. What I will say is that I have seen a bevy of unflattering comments on both of the aforementioned websites for the last several years. If EA isn't making the money it expects to make it is because it's customers, of whom their are millions buying the Madden franchise alone, are exhausted with seeing many other video game companies treating their loyal customer with a sense of value.

Companies like Valve have done there part to diminish EA's global dominance over PC game consumers by releasing games for (often close to) free through their Steam platform whereby gamers can download and stream content. Companies like Epic Games and Bungie are being promoted by the oldest form of advertising, word of mouth, for their above the bar customer service and attention to detail while EA is being pounded on forums and blogs on a daily basis for being seemingly disconnected from their customers and their needs. Here are but a few examples (the first 3 are on EA's website and the final one is from consumeraffairs.com):

Example 1
Example 2
Example 3
135 Complaints and Reviews of EA

Most of us realize that the CEO of a company like EA isn't taking phone calls from dissatisfied customers. We know that he isn't directly responsible for the complaints that many of these EA customers have. What he is responsible for, is recognizing the evident problem and using his authority as the CEO of the company to fix it in any way that saves their reputation and therefore their bottom line. EA cannot swiftly fire the 1000's of customer service representatives that seem to just not get it. And the company can't fix the logistical problems it has overnight. What it can do is send a message to it's customers that it is aware of the problem and in the process of improving it. The quickest way to do this is by firing or forcing out it's Chief Executive Officer.

It isn't just poor customer service that has game buying consumers up in arms against EA though. The NFL is far and away the most popular sport in America. EA's Madden franchise sells millions of copies annually. It sold 1.6 million copies of it's most recent edition, Madden 13, in it's first week. By buying the exclusive rights to produce the only NFL game each and every year, the company has excluded viable competitors like 2kSports from creating an alternative for fans. In this industry, as in almost every other, competition creates an environment where companies look to make their product better and sometimes even sell it for less to thwart the competition. It has become abundantly clear that EA does not want to have to deal with the pesky idea of making sure their products are improving. Why look to innovate and improve your product when you can just eliminate the competition?

These are just a few examples of the declining relationship between Electronic Arts and their customers. The list of frustrations goes on and on. I am not a veteran EA basher. I don't want to lead a charge against the company. I am a huge fan of EA Sports franchises like NHL, FIFA, Madden, and Tiger Woods. I will continue to buy them because if they aren't the only option they are the best option and I'm a weak consumer, unwilling to forego my fun with Madden to send my $60 message to the company. What I wish we could see out of this massive company is the placement of a new CEO that begins his term with the company by addressing us as fans and consumers. Please, Mr. Future CEO, take notice of the issues being raised about the companies shortcomings and monopolization of the market and promise to do something about it. As sports video gamers anticipate the release of the PlayStation 4 and the XBox 720, we are left to wonder, could this mean the "next generation" for EA as well? I certainly hope so.