In a Wednesday earnings call, Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello described the company's current strategy as "defensive" and announced that they are shifting to offense.
"Our strategies could be defined as fundamentally 'defensive,'" he said. "Today, we are announcing a big shift to 'offense.'"
The EA CEO then acknowledged that although the company has become the industry leader thanks to its retail games, it is time to embrace the digital age and adopt a "games as a service" model. "Over the coming years, we will transform EA from a packaged goods company to a fully integrated digital entertainment company," he explained.
EA will start with its stable IP such as FIFA, Madden, Battlefield, Need for Speed, The Sims, Tetris, Dragon Age. "We fully intend to make these properties into year-round businesses that lead their sectors across a range of platforms," Riccitiello said.
It is about time EA ditches the mandatory annual FIFA, Madden and other sports titles and adopt a continuous update cycle for their graphics, gameplay and players rooster.