THQ: Big three must change business model

Publisher THQ has urged the three biggest companies in control of the modern video games market to rethink the fundamentals of their content delivery strategies and embrace emerging platforms such as microtransactions.

The comments come as THQ CEO Brian Farrell prepares to release the latest version of MX vs ATV.

The game will carry a lower upfront price but will also have less content. Gamers will then have the option of increasing the offer by purchasing additional DLC expansions.

"What we really need, and we’ve been talking to them about it, is for Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo – if they really want to stay at the cutting edge of the games industry – to adjust their business models to allow for these new consumer experiences," Farrell told the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference, as reported by CVG.

"Consumers are going to demand it, in our view.

"We’re platform agnostic. That’s going to be the winner at the end of the day, and that’s where we’re going to migrate our content. We’ll make great franchises. If new platforms emerge, or the current winners adjust their business models – which we’re pushing for really hard – we have to keep our flexibility.

"What we’re thinking about those new markets is if we create great entertainment – and we’ve been doing this for 20 years – we need to be platform agnostic and figure out where’s the business opportunity for a particular consumer on a particular platform."