EA has made it clear that Battlefield 3 and the next Call of Duty will be waging a war over who will be the number one shooter titles this Fall. Speaking during an Ad Age conference keynote, he said that both companies could end up spending over $100 million promoting their respective games.
Speaking broadly, he said the gaming industry now includes 1.5 billion players worldwide primarily with free-to-play online and smartphone titles. Riccitiello predicted that in three to four years, gaming could eclipse worldwide TV ownership with 3 billion players.
Riccitiello also noted that games present a captive audience the way other mediums don’t. “People don’t really do anything else when they’re playing games, they’re focused on it,” he said. “When people watch TV or use the internet, they’re usually doing something else.”
He also noted that EA can serve dynamic content to 233 million unique users each day. Riccitiello added that the company sees 15 million hours of online gameplay from 5 million of those unique users every day.
Riccitiello noted that in-game advertising can be obtrusive, and noted that players spend large amounts of times in online lobbies, and that’s where ads can naturally fit. He also advised advertisers to get into the game market now, before a bidding war he predicts will come in the new few years.
Source: AdAge
