Electronic Arts Repeats as "Worst Company in America"

[Andy Chalk]

Electronic Arts Repeats as "Worst Company in America"

With more than three-quarters of the vote, the videogame publisher absolutely crushed second-place finisher Bank of America.

Bank of America is a multi-trillion-dollar operation with a reputation for horrid customer service and bad behavior that's cost it more than $40 billion in lawsuit settlements with everyone from individual investors to the U.S. government. But for all its power, corruption and the damage it's left in its wake, it never stood a chance against a company that publishes videogames we all like to play.

Voting for the 2013 Worst Company in America award has concluded and once again, Electronic Arts has run away with it, drawing nearly 78 percent of the vote to claim the prize for an unprecedented second year running. "EA has repeatedly failed at three core requirements of running a consumer-friendly business," according to The Consumerist, by producing too many rushed, cash-in games, overpricing its products and then failing to properly support them post-release. Although they're not all 2012 releases, it cited Mass Effect 3, Dead Space 3 and the admittedly-disastrous launch of SimCity as among its most egregious missteps.

EA beat out companies including Facebook, Ticketmaster, Walmart, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and of course Bank of America on its way to claiming the crown, which is an impressive feat in its own right, and no organization - not Haliburton, not the RIAA, not even BP - has ever won twice. But when "we live in an era marked by massive oil spills, faulty foreclosures by bad banks and rampant consolidation in the airline and telecom industries," as the site notes, does this poll really suggest that EA is the Worst Company in America, or is it just the easiest one for people on the internet to get mad at?

Either way, congratulations, I guess. Dare we dream for a three-peat in '14?

Source: The Consumerist [http://consumerist.com/2013/04/09/ea-makes-worst-company-in-america-history-wins-title-for-second-year-in-a-row/]


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[Andy Shandy]

Yeah, count me as one of those people that believe that there are much worse companies than EA, and that they only won because gamers are more... "internet ready" for want of a much better phrase, than some of the other people who would be complaining about the other companies.

Not to say that EA haven't done some bad shit but I think there should be some perspective when it comes to things like this.

 

[LordLundar]

Either way, congratulations, I guess. Dare we dream for a three-peat in '14?

Given Moore's reaction to EA being in the top 4, a three-peat is damn near certain.

 

[PuckFuppet]

I said this in the thread that discussed the possibility of this being a repeat, so I'll say it here again for good measure, the Consumerist is pitched as and operates by a "consumer opinion/experience" model of reporting. It isn't supposed to be some extremely well considered and insightful look into the way businesses run from within their respective industries.

That said, of course EA was going to take the prize. Demographics>policy/facts every time.

 

[RJ 17]

I think that article where the slap-dick from EA was trying to justify why EA is getting all the hate because "The tallest trees catch the most wind" pretty much summed things up. For one: gamers are more likely to be dicking around online enough to actually care to vote in such a poll. But also there's the fact that they absolutely take their consumers for granted.

Yeah, your a business and it's your duty to keep your share-holders and investors happy. But when their happiness comes at the expense of consumer satisfaction then you're not going to be having consumers for much longer...and then the investors and share-holders aren't going to be too happy anyways.

That and they always try to cover the screw-ups with lies. Not even good ones, lies that are VERY easily called out as lies and proven wrong. Customers don't really like it when you just piss all over their face while laughing and swearing it's just the rain.

 

[DTWolfwood]

I'm just going to assume that the people Bank of America screws over can't afford internet, or are too concerned with scraping a living to even care to vote against them.

Way to be a piece of turd EA.

 

[VoidWanderer]

As long as EA listens to their 'experts' and 'analysts', they will continue to claim their 'rewards'.

They need to realize that its the gamers that they need to listen to, not 'experts'.

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

Not trying to downplay what EA has done because they are pretty shit in their own right, but out of some of the companies listed I think they are much worse than them. Some of those companies screwed with people's livelihoods and somehow a company that makes entertainment gets the top spot.

Makes me wonder sometimes.

 

[PuckFuppet]

I'm just going to assume that the people Bank of America screws over can't afford internet, or are too concerned with scraping a living to even care to vote against them.

There was actually a pretty concerted campaign on and around the Consumerist to have the Golden Poo arrive at the doorstep of BoA. But unlike EA when BoA tells a blatant barefaced lie they have enough good PR people to sell that lie to enough idiots to hear said PR then regurgitate it as fact for them to dodge bullets like this regularly. No matter how savaged they become in the media.

So in the battle to decide the worst company it isn't about how much damage you do, how many lives you actually ruin or people you drive to kill themselves. Its about how well you can lie to cover it up.

 

[CharrHearted]

it doesn't matter who wins the tournament, nothing happens, with band of america they can just ignore it, but EA can't ignore this.

 

[PunkRex]

I don't agree but heres hoping EA will take something away from this, right AJ?
Fair play, screw erm. Evolve or die EA, its how nature works.

 

[dalek sec]

Yeah, count me as one of those people that believe that there are much worse companies than EA, and that they only won because gamers are more... "internet ready" for want of a much better phrase, than some of the other people who would be complaining about the other companies.

Not to say that EA haven't done some bad shit but I think there should be some perspective when it comes to things like this.

I think for this it's just in term's shit service that they get the title "Worst Company in America". I wanted to them win as well but yeah, there are far companies out there though at this point we should know not to trust any big companies at all.

"EA has repeatedly failed at three core requirements of running a consumer-friendly business."

It's right there in the article but then again, EA is a easy target but damnit, they make it easy to zero in on them.

Edit: I'm not trying to insult just I think alot of people forget what the "award" is exactly.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Not trying to downplay what EA has done because they are pretty shit in their own right, but out of some of the companies listed I think they are much worse than them. Some of those companies screwed with people's livelihoods and somehow a company that makes entertainment gets the top spot.

Makes me wonder sometimes.

Just goes to show, that vidja gaems are srs bsnss

I'd like post something from another thread about this, I think it's a rather good point.

The reason EA crushes it in a competition like this is because people have been conditioned to expect that utilities, banks, and energy companies are just going to be evil. Malice for mankind is built right into the type of business they're in. Nobody buys a plane ticket sure that their experience is going to be rosy. Nobody takes out a loan and expects to walk out of the bank smiling, feeling like they're a valued customer. We go into those businesses expecting to be bent over, and we're usually happy if the company uses lube first.

EA, however, is supposed to be selling us products that make life happier. They're selling a product that's supposed to be a pure positive. Not only that, but they are so big that their business practices are leaking over into and influencing the rest of the video game market, an area of business that is deeply important to many people. So when a company is evil there, we expect it less, and so the betrayal hurts more.

Bank of America lost (and lost big) because everyone expects them to be assholes. They can be proud of that; that they got the #2 worst company in america because everyone expects them to suck and they didn't disappoint. But EA won by a landslide because they're not supposed to suck, but they do it anyway. Not only that, they do it with an open contempt that even banks and utilities have learned to at least try and mask. EA is so new to the "being evil" game that they're naked and obvious about it, and that's doubly insulting.

That's why they won. Because they're not supposed to be able to trade punches with BoA and Comcast and Ticketmaster, but they do it anyway, and do it well. They're the Rocky Balboa of shit companies. A well deserved win.

 

[PuckFuppet]

it doesn't matter who wins the tournament, nothing happens, with band of america they can just ignore it, but EA can't ignore this.

This isn't necessarily true, EA can ignore it if they so choose. The fact that they've already come out and tried to get in-front of it with that horse-manure covered piece of apologist nonsense last week means that now people know they're aware of it, and know that on some level they think it actually matters.

 

[rodneyy]

maybe its like a lightning rod thing, all the really truly bad companys are paying off EA to do this crap divert attention away from their ill deeds, let media coverage fill up with all the obligatory are they/arent they the worst debates all the wile they sit under the radar not being noticed.

bit like when http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/1588323.stm this happened as long as everyone else is paying attention to other things we can get away with more.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Again, what? Worst company in America?? Really? I mean I hate EA, I really do, but worst company in America? I don't think I'd even put them in the Top 5, Top 10 maybe, Top 25 certainly, but #1 hardly.

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

Not trying to downplay what EA has done because they are pretty shit in their own right, but out of some of the companies listed I think they are much worse than them. Some of those companies screwed with people's livelihoods and somehow a company that makes entertainment gets the top spot.

Makes me wonder sometimes.

Just goes to show, that vidja gaems are srs bsnss

I'd like post something from another thread about this, I think it's a rather good point.

The reason EA crushes it in a competition like this is because people have been conditioned to expect that utilities, banks, and energy companies are just going to be evil. Malice for mankind is built right into the type of business they're in. Nobody buys a plane ticket sure that their experience is going to be rosy. Nobody takes out a loan and expects to walk out of the bank smiling, feeling like they're a valued customer. We go into those businesses expecting to be bent over, and we're usually happy if the company uses lube first.

EA, however, is supposed to be selling us products that make life happier. They're selling a product that's supposed to be a pure positive. Not only that, but they are so big that their business practices are leaking over into and influencing the rest of the video game market, an area of business that is deeply important to many people. So when a company is evil there, we expect it less, and so the betrayal hurts more.

Bank of America lost (and lost big) because everyone expects them to be assholes. They can be proud of that; that they got the #2 worst company in america because everyone expects them to suck and they didn't disappoint. But EA won by a landslide because they're not supposed to suck, but they do it anyway. Not only that, they do it with an open contempt that even banks and utilities have learned to at least try and mask. EA is so new to the "being evil" game that they're naked and obvious about it, and that's doubly insulting.

That's why they won. Because they're not supposed to be able to trade punches with BoA and Comcast and Ticketmaster, but they do it anyway, and do it well. They're the Rocky Balboa of shit companies. A well deserved win.

Super srs.

That's pretty damn good point, and it makes a lot of sense. I would expect that people would loose their shit if all of a sudden EA decided to stop being "evil" and went on to be a "good" company.

That would be an interesting day.

 

[mattttherman3]

Mass Effect 3 a mistep? REALLY? Not in terms of financial success. The only problem that the most vocal of us sited was the damned ending. Do not tell me your sales figures were poor, that is bullshit. I refuse to believe it. Especially since DLC(SOME OF IT FREE) was produced for a full year after release, you do not continue to invest in a failed game. Fucking jerks.

That said, no, not the worst company in reality in terms of fucking people over. No that always goes to big banks and insurance companies. YOU ARE NOT ACTUALLY IN GOOD HANDS IF YOU GO TO ALL STATE, DAVID PALMER IS LYING TO YOU

 

[Entitled]

I actually agree that EA is worse than the other contenders.

Being a greedy, exploitative bank, or a manufacturer, has been a given for centuries. It is only natural that corporations are trying to get away with whatever they can, it's in their very nature, and it's to a certain extent, inevitable.

What makes EA stand out, is it's amazingly creative methods of inventing newer and newer forms of dick-cockery, and doing their best to ruin this budding fresh art form and cultural frontier.

If Bank of America would be Hitler, EA would be Mengele.