MediaFile

GlobalMedia-Gaming giants differ on mobile, social games

Gabriel Madway

Nov 30, 2010 19:36 EST

Much of the buzz in gaming these days revolves around two small but fast-growing areas: social games and mobile ones played on smartphones. But two titans of the video game industry have decidedly different takes on those markets.

There are already tens of thousands of game apps available for the iPhone and competing Android smartphones, and tens of millions of people playing free games on Facebook.

Still, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick (pictured) sounded less than enthusiastic about those markets when he spoke to the Reuters Global Media Summit in New York on Tuesday. And that represented a stark contrast from what Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello said just a day earlier

Kotick on apps: “We don’t view the App Store as a really big opportunity for dedicated games.”

On tablets: “I think it is a different device than a mobile device, but from a gaming perspective it is probably not a big opportunity for us just yet.”

On social:  “I don’t think there is any question that people are playing Facebook games. The hours speak for themselves. But monetizing those hours is very different than just serving up free games… I think you will see a lot of investment there, continued investment there. But that is different. There is a different question, assessing it as a business opportunity. I think right now we don’t see an opportunity for us to participate in that market.”

Contrast that with the words of Riccitiello, who spent plenty of time in his summit appearance making the case that the future of gaming — the expansion of the customer base — would be fueled in part by mobile and social.

Activision’s Kotick: Game prices are OK; demand will come

Franklin Paul

Oct 30, 2009 16:36 EDT

Video game executives are some of the most optimistic you’ll ever meet. But you have to think they dream of the good old days (of only one year ago) when the industry was called “recession resistant”, thanks to the idea that “cocooning” consumers would, ad infinitum, plop down $60 for games.

Those days may be gone — just ask Nintendo. Now game makers are eyeing the holiday shopping season, with a lot on the line. Still, many are upbeat. Activision Blizzard Chief Executive Bobby Kotick, for one, says that at its core, the industry slowdown is about the wicked recession, not a shrinking appeal for games.

Reuters: Has the appetite for games dwindled? Kotick: I think the reason why the take-up rates over the last 6 or 7 months have been what they have been, as compared with where they were, has much more to do with macroeconomics than fatigue in the category. Once you are getting to that gift giving (season), my sense is that you are going to see a change in consumption.

One thing you won’t see this the holiday season: a drop in prices from the standard of $60 and up for top shelf games such as Activision’s highly anticipated “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2″ and “DJ Hero Renegade Edition” ($199). Kotick says that the price is right, given the rising cost of development, and the fact that that prices have been steady for a long time compared to that of other entertainment forms.

Reuters: Any chance for price movement? Kotick: Not that I’m aware of. If you look at the cost of development ten year ago to today and the cost of marketing, our ability to hold prices firm over ten years (is worth noting). If I told you that we had a 4x increase in 10 years in production expenses and even more than that in marketing and selling, we are still holding firm on those low price points.

Reuters: So prices could have been even higher? Kotick: Yes — (even) if you just added some inflation adjustment. We have tried to maintain no-price-increases and making sure that the products we are delivering are always the highest quality.