John Riccitiello (Electronic Arts CEO) Steps Down

RC Cola · Mar 18, 2013

https://twitter.com/gamasutra/status/313743404548882432

Breaking: John Riccitiello steps down as CEO of Electronic Arts. More to follow.
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I might edit in more details later.

He took over in 2007 BTW:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Riccitiello

He received his Bachelors of Science degree from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.[1]

He then worked in a variety of consumer product companies including The Clorox Company (Brand Manager), PepsiCo (Group Marketing Director), Häagen-Dazs International (Managing Director), Wilson Sporting Goods (President and Chief Executive Officer), and Sara Lee Corporation (President and Chief Executive Officer, Bakery Division).[1]

From October 1997 through April 2004, Riccitiello became President and Chief Operating Officer of Electronic Arts.[1] He then left EA and co-founded Elevation Partners,[1] where Riccitiello served as Managing Director. In 2007, Riccitiello was re-hired by EA, this time to serve as CEO. He currently serves on the Board of Councilors of the USC School of Cinematic Arts and on the Board of Directors of the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business.[1]

Riccitiello has been credited with diversifying Electronic Arts' business model, and leading the company's shift from consumer packaged goods into the digital delivery of content via console, PC, tablet and mobile devices.[3] A few months after becoming EA’s CEO in 2007, Riccitiello called a meeting of EA’s top executives to address the company’s need to transform itself to survive. Riccitiello described the company’s position at the time: “Our game quality was down, and our costs were high. I could see a fundamental digital transformation coming to our industry that we were not even prepared for. The hardest part was that we were in deep denial.”[4]

In an August, 2011 blog post, Riccitiello spoke publicly about the transformation: “Our quality has risen dramatically. We’ve built an $800m+ digital business while pushing down operating costs ... Now, we are switching from defense to offense. We’re focusing on building our intellectual properties/franchises into year-round business. We’ve established our own platform, Origin, and we continue to grow our digital business."[5]

Earlier in the year, at a commencement address at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, Riccitiello said "we knew it would be hard but we had no idea how hard. We knew the enormous investments would be unsettling to investors … and that the return would be a long way off. Perhaps most painfully – we had to do these three hard things while the press and many financial analysts told us we were crazy – that the cutting we were doing was great, but that the investment in digital was just not a good idea. It proved very hard to hear the negative drumbeat from out there in the public while tacking very hard challenges at work. Like everyone else who has had a long business career, I’ve had first-hand experience with failure – and I’ve had the opportunity to learn and recover from it. Everyone fails. Everyone falls down. Everyone loses a game or gets a bad grade … When it happens, fail well."[6]

However, EA has fallen into hard times, having recently been voted the worst company in America by the Consumerist magazine, beating the likes of Bank of America and AT&T.[7] EA's share price continues to tumble, losing over half its value since January 2012 and people have started to question Riccitiello's competence as CEO.[8] Riccitiello's response was that this state of affairs was of no fault of his own but that of investors 'who did not understand the gaming industry'.[9]
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edit:
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/..._down_after_what_could_be_a_rough_quarter.php

Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello has apparently resigned from the company.

A memo sent to outlets including Gamasutra says that Riccitiello will step down as both the CEO and a member of its board of directors effective March 30. A replacement has not been named.

"I am proud of what we have accomplished together, and after six years I feel it is the right time for me pass the baton and let new leadership take the company into its next phase of innovation and growth," Riccitiello said in a statement.

His departure may well have to do with the announcement today that EA expects its revenues and earnings per share for this current financial quarter to be at the low end or slightly below what it was projecting at the end of January. Those results will be announced on May 7.

Investors seem pleased with the news: shares are up 5.45 percent in after-hours trading, at press time.

Longtime EA veteran Larry Probst has been named the company's executive chairman in order to facilitate a transition while it searches for its next CEO.
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Xerobull · Mar 18, 2013

Simcity?

RC Cola · Mar 18, 2013

It did sell 1.1M+ at launch (biggest launch of any SimCity), so if anything, that might have kept him onboard.

Though perhaps there was pressure to remove him for a while (well...no "perhaps" about it I think), and the SimCity backlash allows EA to benefit from such a move.

It is unclear to me whether his replacement would be any better.

GanjaRocket · Mar 18, 2013

EA is still gonna EA... nothing to see here really

Xerobull · Mar 18, 2013

RC Cola said: ↑

It did sell 1.1M+ at launch (biggest launch of any SimCity), so if anything, that might have kept him onboard.

Though perhaps there was pressure to remove him for a while (well...no "perhaps" about it I think), and the SimCity backlash allows EA to benefit from such a move.

It is unclear to me whether his replacement would be any better.
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Eh, the size of the city plot and the always online BS is what kept me from buying, and I'm sure a big chunk of other potential customers.

3Rings · Mar 18, 2013

EA has been making questionable decisions for the last couple of years.

For example, I still don't understand why they would alienate one of their most loyal customer base by eliminating Madden for the PC. Those PC gamers were loyal to the brand and many are not into console gaming. Yet, they killed a revenue stream.

PC Gamers are still visiting forums and creating rosters for Madden 08. You would think EA would be able tap into that revenue stream.

dachuda86 · Mar 18, 2013

Doesn't EA have that awesome basketball game that... oh wait, that's take 2 productions... what does EA have then that I care about?

LCAhmed · Mar 18, 2013

dachuda86 said: ↑

Doesn't EA have that awesome basketball game that... oh wait, that's take 2 productions... what does EA have then that I care about?
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FIFA is pretty beast

Jontro · Mar 18, 2013

Mass Effect could have been a whole lot better had EA not been a part of it.

"E..A..Sports... It *****s the game"

Uprising · Mar 18, 2013

I would love for them to bring Madden back to PC....that and NCAA.

juicystream · Mar 18, 2013

When EA bought exclusive NFL rights, I was pretty much done with them.

Would buy Sim City, but the always online is not acceptable to me.

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John Riccitiello (Electronic Arts CEO) Steps Down

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Xerobull ...and I'm all out of bubblegum

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Xerobull ...and I'm all out of bubblegum

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