09 June 2006

EA Mobile Sets Sights on Premium Services in Europe

EA Mobile is hoping to repeat the success of its premium service offerings in the U.S. by making similar offerings available in Europe. “We will offer content that has universal appeal, such as The Sims 2™, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06, and Need For Speed Most Wanted. When it comes to other premium sports, we will offer Euro-centric content,” says Lincoln Wallen, CTO of EA Mobile. Currently, American premium channels carry EA Mobile’s Madden NFL 06 and NBA Live 06 Basketball One-On-One, while sports such as soccer have more appeal in Europe.

JAMDAT, one of the best known names in mobile gaming, was acquired by giant Electronic Arts in February 2006 for $680 million. JAMDAT, which had reported a revenue run rate of $80 million per year before it was acquired, had acquired such titles as Tetris, Bejeweled, Doom RPG, and The Lord of the Rings through licensing agreements, and had developed its own brand through titles such as JAMDAT Bowling, JAMDAT Downhill, JAMDAT Football and JAMDAT Mini Golf.

“There are compelling arguments for the premium mobile-content services, both in terms of economics for the supplier and quality of experience for the user. We see the S60 as a key platform around which premium channels can be built”

JAMDAT’s key preacquisition success indicators included the following:

• Distribution by more than 80 operators worldwide.
• Approximately 30% market share in the U.S. and one of the top European publishers

“There are compelling arguments for premium mobile-content services, both in terms of economics for the sup­plier and quality of experience for the user,” says Wallen. “Channels that support these premium services do not exist yet in Europe, but they will—and soon! The infrastructure is there.” The economics of supplying the premium service experience are appealing to the mobile developer, Wallen says. For example, EA Mobile’s Need for Speed Underground title sells for $9.99 and Need for Speed Most Wanted sells for $12.99 in a U.S.-based premium channel, whereas the average price for such games in the U.S. is $5.99.

Wallen also assesses the S60 platform as an important base for the growth of premium content services in Europe. “We support all commercially viable platforms, and in Europe we see the S60 as a key platform around which premium service experiences can be built,” he says. “It is the premium service experience that consumers will be looking for, and the S60 platform is solidly positioned to support that experience.”

Forum Nokia PRO and EA Mobile

JAMDAT brings popular titles such as:

Through its new JAMDAT holdings, EA Mobile has established a close relationship with Forum Nokia PRO. In addition to providing prototypes of the Nokia N90 and Nokia N70 multimedia devices, and the Nokia 6282, Nokia 5140i, and Nokia 6061 phones to JAMDAT, Forum Nokia PRO has also provided JAMDAT with marketing op­portunities, demonstrating JAMDAT titles at the S60 stand at the 3GSM World Congress 2006 and preloading JAMDAT games onto the Nokia 6030 phone for a promotion with Cingular. EA Mobile’s S60 FIFA game has also been pre-loaded on variants of the Nokia 3230.

“It is impossible to overstate the importance of the preloading of application software onto devices,” says Wallen. “It is hugely important to get the prototype devices, so we can have the software ready; and it is even more impor­tant to get that software preloaded onto the devices themselves.”

3D Graphics Is Most Important New-Generation Feature

In looking at the new generation of devices, such as the S60 3rd Edition devices, Wallen singles out 3D graphics as the most important market enabler. “We see 3D graphics , not as a technology, but as an enticement to the mass market. Consumers want a game that provides great fun, but they also want characters to look and behave like characters in a lifelike situation. In a golf game, for example, people want the reality of the 3D look,” he says.

“We see 3D graphics, not as a technology, but as an enticement to the mass market.”

Wallen says that Macromedia Flash Lite technology from Adobe on the new generation of devices is a useful secondary technology. “It can be used for the delivery of simpler games, but beyond that, it is an important advertising medium that is potentially available for the marketing and promotion of the games,” he says. The new security features are critical to the digital rights management of the more expensive and high-quality games. “This is an enabler in that it makes publishers comfortable with creating content and distributing it.”

Overall, he says, the S60 3rd Edition presents a media-centric package that can support the message of premium-content channels. “It’s a message to the consumer,” he says. “If you like media, then use these devices to get media. When you do, you will be rewarded with a high-quality experience. That is a promise that drives prices, and it drives consumer investment in entertainment.”

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