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http://gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=4814
EA expects PS3 to arrive by mid-2006 - Jenson
Rob Fahey 10:13 08/10/2004
Next generation timescale could see Microsoft and Sony platforms launching
together
Electronic Arts' CFO Warren Jenson has told an investment conference in the
USA that the company currently expects the Xbox 2 and PS3 to launch within
six months of each other, in a window beginning in late 2005.
Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia XIII Conference earlier this
week, Jenson said that EA is expecting to see Microsoft launching Xbox 2 for
the holiday season in 2005, with PS3 following no more than six months
afterwards.
While Jenson did qualify his statements by saying that EA doesn't have all
the information about the launches as yet, and that the information they do
have isn't perfect, his comments will be seen as further confirmation of the
widely rumoured Xbox 2 launch timescale.
They also place the PlayStation 3 closer on the timeline than some had
expected; confusion over Sony's development plans for the console has led
some commentators to push their guesses on the date out as far as winter
2006, but Jenson suggested that the firm may even launch as early as late
2005 to avoid giving Microsoft a significant head-start.
Aside from his comments on the next-generation platforms, the bulk of
Jenson's presentation focused on Electronic Arts' performance within the
games industry and on comparisons with similar market-leading companies in
other media and technology industries.
He told the conference that EA has consistently grown the number of titles
selling over a million units, from 13 titles in 2001 to 27 titles in 2004,
and said that as of August 2004, EA has three franchises which have
generated over a billion dollars in cumulative revenue - Madden NFL, FIFA
Soccer and The Sims - and seven further titles which have generated over
$500 million.
In comparing EA with other companies, Jenson showed that EA has a higher
share of international revenue as a percentage of total revenue than News
Corp, Disney, Time Warner or Viacom, proving that the firm's franchises have
global appeal.
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