Electronic Arts 2012 Annual Report Download - page 91

Annual Report
and Korea. Our focus is on producing high-quality, branded titles across a multitude of carriers,
geographies, and mobile devices and tablets, including the Apple iPhone and iPad, and Google Android
compatible phones.
Playfish. Through Playfish, we offer free-to-play social games including The Sims Social, Pet Society,
EA Sports FIFA Superstars and Madden NFL Superstars that can be played on platforms such as
Facebook, Google, iPhone and Android. Playfish generates revenue through sales of digital content and
Internet-based advertising.
Pogo. Through our Pogo online service, we offer casual games such as card, puzzle and word games on
www.pogo.com, as well as on Facebook and other platforms. In addition to paid subscriptions, Pogo
also generates revenue through Internet-based advertising and sales of digital content.
In addition, we have a licensing agreement with Hasbro, which provides us with the exclusive rights to create
digital games for all major platforms based on most of Hasbro’s toy and game intellectual properties, including
MONOPOLY, SCRABBLE (for United States and Canada), YAHTZEE (excluding the Nordic countries),
NERF, and LITTLEST PET SHOP. Hasbro games are developed by our EA Mobile, Pogo and Social studios.
Competition
We compete with other video game companies for the leisure time and discretionary spending of consumers, as
well as with providers of different forms of entertainment, such as motion pictures, television, social networking,
online casual entertainment, and music. Our competitors vary in size from very small companies with limited
resources to very large, diversified corporations with global operations and greater financial resources than ours.
We also face competition from other video game companies and large media companies to obtain license
agreements for the right to use some of the intellectual property included in our products.
Competition in Games for Console Devices
We compete directly with Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo, each of which develop and publish software for their
respective console platforms. We also compete with numerous companies which, like us, develop and publish
video games that operate on these consoles and on PCs and handheld game players. These competitors include
Activision Blizzard, Take-Two Interactive, THQ, and Ubisoft. Diversified media companies such as Disney are
also involved in software game publishing.
Competition in Games for Mobile Devices
The marketplace for mobile games is characterized by frequent product introductions, rapidly emerging new
mobile platforms, new technologies, and new mobile application storefronts. As the penetration of mobile
devices that feature fully-functional browsers and additional gaming capabilities continues to deepen, the demand
for applications continues to increase and there are more mobile application storefronts through which developers
can offer products. Mobile game applications are currently being offered by a wide range of competitors,
including Capcom Mobile, DeNA, Gameloft, Glu Mobile, Gree, Rovio, and Zynga, and hundreds of smaller
companies. We expect new competitors to enter the market and existing competitors to allocate more resources
to develop and market competing applications. As a result, we expect competition in the mobile entertainment
market to intensify.
Competition in Online Gaming Services
The online (i.e., Internet-based) games market is characterized by frequent product introductions, new and
evolving business models and new platforms. We expect new competitors to enter the market and existing
competitors to allocate more resources toward developing online games services. As a result, we expect
competition in the online game services market to intensify.
Our competitors in the online games market include major media companies, traditional video game publishing
companies, and companies that specialize in online games including social networking game companies. In the
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