When it comes to the true titans of the gaming industry, Electronic Arts still stands as one of the biggest. The company has grown to incredible heights with some of the biggest licenses on the planet with exclusive rights to publish Star Wars, FIFA and NFL titles. They also have a huge amount of studios underneath them or, at least, did. The company has created something of a reputation for buying studios and then shutting them down not long afterward. While some have survived like BioWare or Maxis, many have been shuttered. That’s why a recent comment from the company’s CFO may or may not bode well for some.
In the company’s most recent quarterly financial conference call, CFO Blake Jorgensen was asked about acquisitions. The question mentioned a ‘big assest’ purchase, which many took to possibly hint at WB Games, which allegedly parent company AT&T is looking to sell with EA being an interested party. Jorgensen said the publisher was very interested in expanding their studios, saying they are always looking for more talent and new IPs.
“We’re always looking at that. We’ll always continue to look at that. We hope we can find more.
It might take some time, but trust that we’re more interested than ever, because we see that talent and building great new franchises is critical to the long-term business.”
Jorgensen ended by saying when it came to who and what to purchase EA always gets to “take a look at almost everything” out there for sale. It’s not a particularly surprising statement as major corporations such as EA are always looking to bring in new studios and talent. Look at Microsoft and how many studios they bought in a relatively short time, for instance. Who will be next for the company to buy up? We’ll have to wait and see.