EA: Ricccitiello on firms Q3 results

On the back of some

large losses

in the publisher’s FYQ3, EA boss John Riccitiello has spoken about the mistakes his company made over the period – and outlined the changes he wants to see in the next 12 months.

We are disappointed with our holiday quarter and our FY09 performance,” Riccitiello stated in an investor call. These results point to three conclusions, which are incorporated into our strategies going forward.

First, we need to improve our approach to bringing key titles to market. Consumers have become more cautious and we need longer lead times on marketing and in some cases more productive investment of our publishing resources. In short, we need to start earlier and focus more.

Second, in this environment, we believe our operating expenses are too high and need to come down.

Third, the Nintendo Wii is even more important than one year ago. It is a clear leader in this cycle. In calendar year ’08, we were the number three publisher in this platform in both North America and in Europe, but we need to move further up on the charts.

Clear and simple, our titles did not perform to our expectations. With the exception of FIFA, we did not deliver the blockbuster titles or chart position we expected. Competitively, EA had only one of the top five titles in North America and Europe versus typically two or more. We were depending on new IP in a year where consumers were even more cautious with their dollars. And one of our anchor titles, Need for Speed, did not deliver fully on our expectations.”

A more detailed look at Riccitiello’s statement can be seen here.

Source: SeekingAlpha