EA Sports: â??Online charges aren’t unfairâ??

EA Sports SVP of worldwide development Andrew Wilson has defended his company’s recently introduced $10 online pass in all future titles, claiming he didn’t believe “even the harshest cynic could argue with [it]”.

The pass – which is needed to play any online content – comes free with new games, but is required to be renewed with a $10 fee in pre-owned titles.

“In order to continue to enhance the online experiences that are attracting nearly five million connected game sessions a day, we think it’s fair to get paid for the services we provide and to reserve these online services for people who pay EA to access them,” Wilson said.

“We’ll continue to invest in creating great games and offer industry-leading online services to extend the game experience to everyone. I don’t think even the harshest cynic can argue with that and instead I think fans will see the value we’re committing to deliver.”

Wilson went on to state that EA saw the pre-owned market as an opportunity, and the pass was not intended to restrict it.

"With Online Pass everyone has access to the same premium online services and content regardless of how and where you buy the game. I’ve been here now for more than a decade, and the investments we’re making in developing for digital are profound," he continued.

"When we see how many people are playing all of our games online, consumers are telling us that competition is endemic to sports in a way that most people don’t get just by playing alone. We want to reserve EA Sports online services for people who pay EA to access them."