EA Chief John Riccitiello Still Isn't Fired

[tmande2nd]

1: Buy a semi-popular developer with a cool new idea!
2: Churn out a bland sequel!
3: Churn out a WORSE game with shitty DLC, shitty MP, and that is a bland COD rip off.
4: Watch series crash, shrug and repeat.

See what happens Mr Riccitiello? Its not that hard.
You ugly piece of greedy corporate filth.

 

[80Maxwell08]

Believe it or not, John seems to be very competent, his board of directors and investors, on the other hand, have no f*cking idea what they're doing. John's hands are tied, because he is at the behest of the shareholders, if they think its a good idea, he HAS to do it.

What? Does EA have some singular majority shareholder I don't know about taking an active role in managing the company? Because it's pretty unusual for shareholders of a public company to have any role in managing it beyond voting for the board who act on their behalf. And even then, it'd be pretty rare for a board to take such an active role in a company as to tell the CEO what they should be making, especially in a creative industry like gaming when the board, or at least some of the members, might literally have no experience with the industry.

Point being, I'm betting he doesn't have shareholders telling him how to manage the day to day business, or which games to green light.

Funny you should mention that. Remember a few years back when John said things like we need new IPs on the market and started green lighting a bunch of games? Along with otuer statements like game prices are too high and the like? Well guess how the shareholders reacted to someone who was actually being competent at the time? They told him to knock it off or they would fire him. So technically they don't decide what games do but they can decide to fire the guy green lighting them.

Pretty interesting viewpoint. What exactly gives you such insight on to such things? Or did you just come to this conclusion logically?

I remember these being news stories a long time ago but sadly I don't have links. I know the terminology is a vote of no confidence where the shareholders decide if the current CEO is doing his job right and choose whether to get rid of him or not. I know after that point we started getting way more money grubbing from them with stuff like the infamous statements of him talking about charging for ammo in shooters. Like Jim Sterling was saying a few years ago they used to be good then came that threat and it all started going downhill.

 

[Druyn]

Well, if THQ's stock decline wasn't considered a problem to their board, I don't see why this would worry EA's.

 

[The Random One]

Of course it is not Riticello's fault EA's stock prices are dropping. Everyone knows stock values are not related to a company's actual performance in any way, shape or form and at best are related to an imaginary version of the company existing in a Socratian/Jungian realm of pure thought. My business advice to Riticello is to attempt to become a being of pure thought and take it from there.

Also, all the people saying DUR DUR OF COURSE THE STOCKS ARE DROPPING WHO WANTS TO BUY EVIL EA are hilarious. You know the image of the greedy video game exec that only wants to make money and doesn't give a shit whether the games are actually good? Investors are ike that. I mean literally. They don't care what the company is doing as long as it makes them money and if they think it won't they'll sell it and buy Chick-a-fil-a instead in a heartbeat. Saying that investors don't want to buy EA because of its business practices is like saying Hitler never listened to his generals because no one trusts Nazis.

 

[The Random One]

Of course it is not Riticello's fault EA's stock prices are dropping. Everyone knows stock values are not related to a company's actual performance in any way, shape or form and at best are related to an imaginary version of the company existing in a Socratian/Jungian realm of pure thought. My business advice to Riticello is to attempt to become a being of pure thought and take it from there.

Also, all the people saying DUR DUR OF COURSE THE STOCKS ARE DROPPING WHO WANTS TO BUY EVIL EA are hilarious. You know the image of the greedy video game exec that only wants to make money and doesn't give a shit whether the games are actually good? Investors are ike that. I mean literally. They don't care what the company is doing as long as it makes them money and if they think it won't they'll sell it and buy Chick-a-fil-a instead in a heartbeat. Saying that investors don't want to buy EA because of its business practices is like saying Hitler never listened to his generals because no one trusts Nazis.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

I say leave him there. The longer he makes the company fist itself, the better everyone else will be.

 

[90sgamer]

I say, "stay the course EA, stay the course." I want to see capitalism work for once.

 

[lancar]

Always nice to see some good news

 

[Darknacht]

They ARE still making all of the money, right? I mean, I'm not an expert at economics, but does it really matter what your stock prices look like if you still make money hand over fist?

Also: I don't think anybody NOT being fired really qualifies as news.

Go look at their financial statements. They have been loosing hundreds of millions of dollars a year(some times over a billion a year), this year was the first time in quite a few years that they actually made money($18 million before taxes, $76 million after taxes) and to do that they had to take out $539 million in debt. So essentially no they are not making money and they haven't been for quite some time.

 

[FantomOmega]

I say leave him there. The longer he makes the company fist itself, the better everyone else will be.

When you mean "fist" did you mean this

SHOVED where the sun don't shine? I could have sworn that he' already using himself as a sock puppet for almost a year now...

Their recent unjust bashing of Steam and forcing people to conform to their Orgin "service" as if they WANTED it doesn't help matters either, investors no longer see EA as a immediate cash cow and would rather not wait to see if it will improve first because the stock could stagnate for years before it improves, cutting into their investment return

Stocks don't reflect the company's performance as some other posters have already pointed out, but EA have been making statements that brings doubt to investors by saying a the next Dead Space must sell so much in order to stay afloat implying their lack of confidence of the game selling well before the game is even completed for release and had to lay off prototype development employees due to "poor sales"...

If Battlefield 3 wasn't under EA it could have been a LOT worse for them

 

[Crazy Zaul]

He will be soon. Then he will have to go work at Taco Bell cos no one else will want him, and EA will go back to just making sports games then everyone will be happy.

 

[shrekfan246]

given the state of EA's stock, which during Riccitiello's tenure has tumbled from over $60 to its current price of $11.23

Whoa, whoa, wait, what? He's been their CEO since 2007 and the stock has dropped by roughly $50? How the hell does he still have his job?

 

[Paladin Anderson]

Leave him as CEO. I see nothing wrong with that. He clearly has a subconscious urge to make people dislike EA as much as possible and anything, or anyone, that furthers that is doing their job as far as I'm concerned.

I agree. If you take him out of being the CEO he'll go on to ruining some other company. Better to take one for the team and keep him on until the company crashes and burns.

 

[Dr. Crawver]

I am amazed this man still has his job. But then, I'm amazed EA still does the shit it does, so I guess the two balance out?

 

[Dr. Crawver]

Business speak: "We have full confidence..."

People speak: "We give him another two weeks..."

here's hoping that this is what they do mean...

 

[Knight Templar]

What exactly does he do that inspires them with confidence?

 

[l3o2828]

While stock has nothing to do with the business a company has, maybe being TRULY on the line of dying will make EA think that maybe, oh i dunno...Their Business model equals shooting yourself on the foot?

 

[Comando96]

This must be why I'm not a CEO. I just don't get economics.

Economic law says this guy should have been fired years ago.

Business law says otherwise.

Economics ≠ Business.

I say, "stay the course EA, stay the course." I want to see capitalism work for once.

Capitalism works, to a surprising degree. What doesn't work is Governments interpritism of Capitalism, combined with democracy.
When a company can get benefits for their company of barriers to entry to the market, regulations making new firms life hard, yet not doing a thing to scorn the established companies at the top... and all at the cheap cost of labbying... or legal bribery.

EA luckily isn't in the too big to go bust position... and if they don't fire this guy soon, they will never be

I am amazed this man still has his job. But then, I'm amazed EA still does the shit it does, so I guess the two balance out?

Stupid Management is Stupid.
Lazy Fatcats are Lazy.

Both to blade if company burns.

 

[Aeonknight]

Who would have guessed that being voted the worst company in America would be bad for your stock prices?

Who would've guessed that people would still be holding up that half assed insult as legitimate after all this time? Oh wait, Escapist, forgot for a second.