EA + NFL = Monopoly

#61 Man, the whole sports genre is going to be broken up. I can only see this as a bad thing for the industry. Lets just hope and pray that 989 doesn't try to secure a major sports license. :{
-Ajari-

#62 I guess this is the final nail in your coffin.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/01/17/news_6116473.html

#63 LOL man this is too crazy. So now basically Madden will be ESPN but with with lesser gameplay and graphics (jab). Wouldn't it be nice if every company could just take a few of the most valuble parts of the competition away from them and buy it for exclusive use? Why stop at football? I can see EA in the headlines now: "Gran Turismo loses it's ability to use licensed cars. SquareEnix loses magic, swords, and the Chocobo. EA buys 90% of the internet service providers around the world for exclusive gameplay purposes rendering Xbox live officially dead. (I hope I didn't just give them an idea) EA buys Mrs. Fields Cookies and secures exclusive rights to the chocolate chip." The industry would be so much better for it and we will all benifit greatly. Well done EA. Ahhh I give up....coffin is shut. I heard a rumor a while back that EA has dropped the "Madden" title which if true brings me to believe they most likley will just call it "ESPN NFL Football". This was a fun debate Ben. No hard feelings on my end.
-Ajari-

#64 EA = Extreme A-holes.


@ Ajari


"Our right to choose is gone so EA wins anyway you look at it and their threat is terminated."


You couldn't be more wrong. You still have the right to NOT purchase any product even remotely connected to EA, and you have the right to NOT purchase any product from any company that supports or does buisness with EA. Trust me dude, nothing will hurt EA worse than not being able to sell their product or to not be able to make deals with other companies that want nothing to do with them. You can also spend time educating others as to why you choose not to support EA and why it is so important. EA has already started a chain reaction that is going to hurt them very much in the long run, it's just a matter of time now.


@ Everyone else,


Saying "But they make the best this, the best that, so I have to get it from them" is nothing more than your own lame ass excuse for not being able to control yourself well enough to actually say "No". If you ca't wait to buy a used copy from someone else, or deal with renting the title, or just plain not even play it at all, then you can pat yourself on the back for helping EA to achieve their goal of telling you exactly what you want to play and how you want to play it.

#65 I haven't seen much of anything from EA that has wowed me in the past few years. The best thing lately... and by lately, I mean in the last 5 years, was C&C Generals, and that wasn't much more than a generic RTS with less strategy involved than most. So yeah, saying they have the best games is a little odd.

#66 I believe that Electronic Arts is a good studio and they definately know how to do business but the things they're doing are going to far. Taking hostile shares in Ubisoft which is arguably the second largest publisher in the world is just terrible. they're trying to become the microsoft of games. They will be forced to pay for thier actions in court i'm sure between this attempted empire and not paying thier employees.

#67 I have to agree with Gonzo on the "@ Everyone else" - and its not just games that people cant control themselves....

#68 AS for those who like ESPN they sold rights to EA for fifteen years. I now see this as an monopoly now more than ever.

#69 To be literally fair. The EA NFL merger thing whatever you wanr to call it is not technically a monopoly. The NFL is not the only Profesional Football organization in America it just so happens to be the biggest and most visible there are still tons of littler ProFootball leagues taking place at a Regional level. Not to try and Disprove the thread I think the whole thing is kinda stupid why EA would need to go through such lengths to secure a market but it is technically legal.

#70 They seem to be a 'factory' with a very large overhead. As with any major organization, they will gather assests as the need arises to continue the organization's goals; namely making more money. Producing a 'game' seems to be not a foremost part of the plan, merely a means to the end.

The quickest way to 'bust' a monopoly, is to NOT purchase any products or [derivitive] services they offer, ever. Period. As the bottom line falls, so will their ability to control...my humble opinion.


BTW: I am a card carrying member of Organized Labor....

#71

Quote:
BTW: I am a card carrying member of Organized Labor....

Ah, a monopolist yourself.

#72

Quote:The NFL is not the only Profesional Football organization in America it just so happens to be the biggest and most visible there are still tons of littler ProFootball leagues taking place at a Regional level.

now calling the cfl isnt a professional sport lol. I mean so they did a google search and said pro football and saw maybe 20 hits. Then they said ok we can do buisness now common on finding loop holes in the system is not business ethical. Then tell me what other football professional game other than NFL is out there. If you say arena football that is not even professional at all. If it was then players from college would go there and scouts would head to college games to recruit players. So saying there are other professional football is kinda rediculous in my point

#73 Its not rediculous because its true and finding loopholes in such matters is not poor buissiness ethics it's just smart buissiness ethics. Now don't get me wrong I'm not exactly for the EA NFL deal even though EA is the company most able to handle deal with their high quality games but I feal the system needs a devils advocate to really pound home the fact that even if people don't like it there is nothing you can really do to stop it. not even a boycott would work because you simply couldn't get enough people to make an impact.


not to clear up why this isn't illegal. The NFL is not the only professional football league. The definition of a professional athlete is one who gets paid for their performances. you can do a little search and find that there are probably over 30 other regional ang semiregional minor football leauges. Now none of these can even hold a candle to the NFL or AFL for that matter but they do pay theire players to play which is enough of a loophole to prove the deal monopoly-less. If anything EA should be commended for convincing the NFL to agree to such a deal.