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EA Disparages Take-Two's MLB Deal
Gamespot has the news that EA's corporate communications vice president Jeff Brown sees the MLB deal as 'stupid money'. From the article: "As far as we're concerned, this looks like stupid money. They are paying an exclusive price for a nonexclusive agreement."
"We want the rights, damnit! Waaah!"
"You got rights before WE could sign for the exclusive, you sneaky dogs!"
"they're stupid stupid look at us! we're the best! we'ere __EXCLUSIVE__"
as if football(american or soccer), rugby or tennis ever was exclusive.
they need a bitchslap to remind them what games are about..
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
All it has to do is lock EA out of a market, and that's what Take Two has done. Without EA as a competitor they have an area of exclusivity, of sorts... they have to compete with first party offerings, but since when has Sony or Nintendo cared that much about baseball? Microsoft is keen due to buying the High Heat franchise, but that's it.
EA is paying exclusive prices to be labeled monopolistic and become singlehandedly responsible for the inevitable downfall of the sports game market. That money doesn't sound too smart to me.
Glog!
This is getting pretty annoying. Enough with the EA crap already, this is practically a nonstory.
/. has actually tempered my own hatred of EA (sizable for years now) to the point where I care less about their actions and more about not wanting to read about it here.
I wish I could mod Zonk (-1, Troll)
In related news, an EA exec recently left only a 14% tip at a local diner, causing untold outrage and mobs-with-pitchforks action across the county. A resident IT employee and avid video gamer was quoted as saying "SEE! Incontrovertible proof that EA is the devil! Rabble rabble!"
Pfft.
[/rant]
why? forty-two.
It will be interesting if EA can manage to get exclusive rights to team names and logos.
But what can they do about open-source player rosters? The NBL (National Basketball League)'s "L.A. Fakers" featuring Tactille Surreal and Toby Plyant? The mighty "Washington Lizards" with Mickey Gordon? The "Detroit Pissed-off's" featuring Claney Pullups? The Utah Spazz and Chicago Boo? Go ahead and sue, I dare ya. EA will have to face this soon enough when they have to create hockey players for "NHL 2005-2006"
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Not sure on this, but I think that professional baseball is ALL controlled by the "MLB" due to a congress-granted monopoly. Every minor-team I know if is affiliated with major-league team. Someone clarify this for me?
If true, then NFL is not all pro football, but MLB is all pro baseball. Outside of MLB, what is there in the U.S.? Maybe, just maybe, you can name your neighbor's kid who is in Little League.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Oh yeah? Well...well...um.... our employees work overtime *and* regular time for free. So who's the loser now!
A lot of people replying to this seem to think that the only significant allure to a baseball game is to, well, play baseball. That is, to simulate hitting a ball and running around bases, or to catch the ball and throw it to the right person fast enough.
That's not what this is about. Many, many people (I believe probably the majority of these games' customer base) are interested not in the game as an abstract activity, but as competition among the teams and players they know so well.
They're already personally involved with the characters, both sympathetically and antagonistically- viewing this as about the game of baseball is like ignoring the difference between a random space opera shooter with some new characters and a licensed Star Wars game where you can play Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Han Solo, or Boba Fett and where you can kill Jar Jar Binks. It's providing interaction with the characters they know.
"It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
Seriously, they can do a lot with this game that EA cannot/ will not. if thy focused on decent graphics with good playability they will beat EA, but probably not quite as bad as EA beats there employees. (rim shot)
You can actually see an approximation of them winning a Pennant. *rimshot*
The key to the enjoyment of pop music is to replace any instance of "love" with "C.H.U.D."
After saying "As far as we're concerned, this looks like stupid money. They are paying an exclusive price for a nonexclusive agreement" Brown continued by laughing and stating "I bet Take-Two actually pays their employees for working overtime. Suckers."
EA's response is not due to the fact that the MLB deal was worthless, but rather was caused by the need to save face in front of shareholders. If EA were to have returned fire with a 'We are disappointed with the current arrangement between Take-2 and MLB ...' or 'We regret blah blah blah', thier stock would no doubt take some form of a hit. Capital from investors is largely based on trust in corporate governance and predictions of future revenue. If an executive were to indicate that the outlook had been hurt from this deal, the market would of pounced on it quickly. Investors are just that way.
Was there some air of 'over-confidence' in it the statement though? Probably, but if there was, it was hot-air. EA's MVB Baseball is about a $40 to $45 million dollar revenue stream according to recent sales figures, meaning that EA will likely lose a nice chunk of earnings. That is, of course, provided that they don't find a really creative way to market newer iterations of thier MVP Baseball games that compensates for a lack of player licenses. That or they'll layoff employees.
Take Two for ensuring that EA cannot get an exclusive rights deal with yet another sport conglomeration while still allowing EA and others the ability to contract and use the names of the players in a healthy competition. May the maker of the best MLB-licensed game win.
Disclaimer: I hate sports games.
Actio personalis moritur cum persona. (Dead men don't sue)
Apparently grammar is NOT something they "take real serious" at EA.
"Sometimes it takes more than an axe and a busload of strangers to work through your anger." -Rikk Estoban
Sure, this would be less appealing than the real deal -- but many people would find it to be a reasonable substitute for a lower price, especially if they could input player names and edit team rosters themselves.
MLB.com has exclusive rights to fantasy baseball and online content involving the MLBPA and it's logos. I would curious to know if this will affect any of the online play of future MLB games.
All this "exclusive licensing rights" stuff is going become a pain in the ass. I never liked the Sega-produced or 989-produced NFL games, but having the option was never a bad thing. These CEOs are nuttier than squirrel turds.
With the NHL existing for the foreseeable future as an institution that has everything to do with professional hockey except for playing it, I look forward to seeing the evolution of the future games.
The similucrae of real players that currently fill the EA hockey videogames will likely be removed from the games around the time the real person would have retired had he still been a player. Look for the roster of your favorite NHL team to slowly fill with goaltending ducks, man-sized slapshotting lizards, and other colorful talking animals, aliens, and robots as EA tries to add some "pizzazz" to this dead-end videogame/sport tie-in franchise.
I'm really looking forward to "Brendan Snail-a-han" being introduced to the Red Wings line-up. This scorin' Escargot will be the only player who acts as his own Zamboni.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.