12/13/2004 10:56:06 PM, by Eric Bangeman
Gaming giant Electronic Arts has signed a five-year agreement with the National Football League and NFL Players' Association, granting it exclusive rights to use NFL players, teams, and stadiums in its games. The pact covers consoles, PCs, and handhelds and means for the next five years, the only release featuring the NFL will be Madden 20XX, NFL Street, and any other titles EA might come up with.
The NFL has long been a forerunner in licensing. Back in the 1950s, it was the first professional league to see the potential of television, and over the years has made itself one of the most TV-friendly sports. The video game licensing agreement with fits with its strategy of signing exclusive deals with cola vendors (Pepsi), beer (Coors), sports drink (Gatorade), and camera (Canon). The league decided to make its videogame license an exclusive one as well, and solicited bids from five publishers.
With the next-generation consoles from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo due over the next two to three years, EA will have the sole NFL titles available for the new platforms. The new Nintendo DS and Sony PSP are also covered under the license.
Expect other professional sports leagues to keep a close eye on this agreement. The amount EA is paying for the exclusive rights has not been released, but it's likely a hefty sum. If it pays off for both NFL and EA, the NBA, Major League Baseball, and NHL (assuming that league actually starts playing games again) may follow in the NFL's footsteps.
While obviously good news for EA, the deal is a major blow to ESPN Videogames and Sega. Their NFL 2K5 title has been highly praised, and with the price set at US$19.95, sales have been brisk. With the NFL off-limits to all but EA, perhaps we'll be treated to ESPN's USFL 2K6 or WFL 2K6 next fall featuring the Denver Gold, New Jersey Generals, Honolulu Hawaiians, or Chicago Fire.
ESPN and Sega aside, the real losers in the deal are the gamers. The US$19.95 price tag might have made EA reconsider its pricing strategy for next year's release. Now, with the competition eliminated, look for the US$49.95 price to stay stead or even increase. Sure, EA will have to keep innovating in order to drive sales of new releases each year. But with no competitors lining up across the ball, will the Madden and NFL Street titles be all they could be?
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20041213-4461.html
Gaming giant Electronic Arts has signed a five-year agreement with the National Football League and NFL Players' Association, granting it exclusive rights to use NFL players, teams, and stadiums in its games. The pact covers consoles, PCs, and handhelds and means for the next five years, the only release featuring the NFL will be Madden 20XX, NFL Street, and any other titles EA might come up with.
The NFL has long been a forerunner in licensing. Back in the 1950s, it was the first professional league to see the potential of television, and over the years has made itself one of the most TV-friendly sports. The video game licensing agreement with fits with its strategy of signing exclusive deals with cola vendors (Pepsi), beer (Coors), sports drink (Gatorade), and camera (Canon). The league decided to make its videogame license an exclusive one as well, and solicited bids from five publishers.
With the next-generation consoles from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo due over the next two to three years, EA will have the sole NFL titles available for the new platforms. The new Nintendo DS and Sony PSP are also covered under the license.
Expect other professional sports leagues to keep a close eye on this agreement. The amount EA is paying for the exclusive rights has not been released, but it's likely a hefty sum. If it pays off for both NFL and EA, the NBA, Major League Baseball, and NHL (assuming that league actually starts playing games again) may follow in the NFL's footsteps.
While obviously good news for EA, the deal is a major blow to ESPN Videogames and Sega. Their NFL 2K5 title has been highly praised, and with the price set at US$19.95, sales have been brisk. With the NFL off-limits to all but EA, perhaps we'll be treated to ESPN's USFL 2K6 or WFL 2K6 next fall featuring the Denver Gold, New Jersey Generals, Honolulu Hawaiians, or Chicago Fire.
ESPN and Sega aside, the real losers in the deal are the gamers. The US$19.95 price tag might have made EA reconsider its pricing strategy for next year's release. Now, with the competition eliminated, look for the US$49.95 price to stay stead or even increase. Sure, EA will have to keep innovating in order to drive sales of new releases each year. But with no competitors lining up across the ball, will the Madden and NFL Street titles be all they could be?
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20041213-4461.html