Madden-NFL Exclusivity Agreement Extended

[caliblue15]

Madden will be the only NFL-licensed game series on the market for at least two more years, thanks to a new agreement between Electronic Arts and the NFL. This is the same exclusivity contract that killed the NFL 2K franchise and ensured Madden would face no real competition. It was originally set to expire next year, but will now run through 2013.

As anyone who has watched ESPN lately is aware, there's a very good chance we're headed towards a lockout in the NFL. The current collective bargaining agreement is set to expire in early March, and certain key issues (such as team owners' desire to extend the regular season to 18 games) may prevent a new deal from being reached before the 2011 season. That potentially means games, if not the entire season, could be lost. That will in turn have an effect on this year's Madden game from a variety of standpoints, not the least of which would be EA's inability to update rosters throughout the season based on the real-life happenings of the NFL.

The Wall Street Journal reported last October that EA was seeking a $30 million reduction from the payments it was set to pay due to the possibility of a lockout. Sports Business Journal Daily is now reporting that EA has been given an unspecified break from its obligations for next season, as well as a one-year extension to the contract, which had been set to expire in 2012.

"For one of our core partners in a difficult environment, we say let's look at this, and maybe it makes some sense to extend something out longer and give our partner some relief in the short term but gain something on the back end," said Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver, who is also chairman of the NFL's business ventures committee.

The report states that the NFL's deal with EA is the biggest non-TV contract the league currently has. The deal was extended back in 2008 and is said to be worth "well into" the nine-figure range. EA also pays the NFL Players Association between $30 and $40 million per year for the right to use players' likenesses.

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter explained the reasoning for the reduction in obligations for this season. Without the assurance that the 2011 season will take place as scheduled, he said, "Why would EA do TV pre-buys [and] advertise the hell out of the Madden game, which presumably they have to commit to before the launch of the game, which is around Aug. 10? They have to put the game out in the market, and that is why they are getting relief."

Regardless of the CBA status, Madden will still be released this August as planned.

http://www.1up.com/news/madden-nfl-e...ement-extended

[caliblue15]

Good news, it's only for an extra year.

[Batman1980]

Hopefully there will be a lot of new NFL games that come out now that are worth playing.

[Harpua]

I'm having a hard time believing that 2k or another developer would even enter the fray based on those 'reduced' numbers above.

The Wall Street Journal reported last October that EA was seeking a $30 million reduction from the payments it was set to pay due to the possibility of a lockout.

I have a feeling we're stuck with Madden until some deep pocket publisher is willing to take the risk on unseating Madden. Sounds like you'd need some significant sales figures to cover the licensing fees alone.

[MaCruz]

I know of one member who is furious about this news.

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by Harpua

I'm having a hard time believing that 2k or another developer would even enter the fray based on those 'reduced' numbers above.



I have a feeling we're stuck with Madden until some deep pocket publisher is willing to take the risk on unseating Madden. Sounds like you'd need some significant sales figures to cover the licensing fees alone.

It was $300 Million in 2004...

Originally Posted by macruz

i know of one member who is furious about this news.

[Frenchy17]

Originally Posted by MaCruz

I know of one member who is furious about this news.

Did the name happen to just Don on you???

[AU6294TX]

haha He probably busted a blood vessel or caused a hemorrhoid with this news haha.

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by Frenchy17

Did the name happen to just Don on you???

Originally Posted by AU6294TX

haha He probably busted a blood vessel or caused a hemorrhoid with this news haha.

[Trace17]

Sweet, another year I don't buy Madden. EA is saving me money one game at a time. Thanks EA!

Their monopoly on the game is absolutely stupid. The lack of competition in the market has absolutely crippled the progression and innovation of football (specifically NFL) games. If there was at least 2-4 studios with decent NFL-based games, there's no telling what sort of growth and creativity we might see. Shame we never will.

And honestly, how does this not violate some sort of monopolization law? I don't remember much from my economics classes about monopoly/antitrust...despite me having a minor in Economics lol. But with any other game there's not near as much monopolization and huge up-front costs that prevent anyone else from entering.

Whatever. I have plenty of other games to play anyway.

[HollyPopDid]

Too furious to post.

[DonRSD]

Originally Posted by MaCruz

I know of one member who is furious about this news.

Originally Posted by caliblue15

Originally Posted by Frenchy17

Did the name happen to just Don on you???

Originally Posted by AU6294TX

haha He probably busted a blood vessel or caused a hemorrhoid with this news haha.

Originally Posted by caliblue15

what a crock of siht.
at least it isnt a 5 year deal this time.

at least apf 2k8 can have updated rosters downloaded to play with authentic nfl teams (no system modding required) so its really apf 2k11

the 360 version has a patch for apf 2k8 which makes the game play much better than ps3 version.
this alone may be a reason for me to buy a controller & power plug for my 360 and hook it back up.
im just waiting for him to do all 32 teams

http://www.ratesports.net

LONG LIVE 2k!!!

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by DonRSD

what a crock of siht.
at least it isnt a 5 year deal this time.

at least apf 2k8 can have updated rosters downloaded to play with authentic nfl teams (no system modding required) so its really apf 2k11

the 360 version has a patch for apf 2k8 which makes the game play much better than ps3 version.
this alone may be a reason for me to buy a controller & power plug for my 360 and hook it back up.
im just waiting for him to do all 32 teams

http://www.ratesports.net

LONG LIVE 2k!!!

It's not a crock of shit, it's because of the labor dispute. Hard to have a new game without new rosters, hence the added extra year... I think we will see competition return after this.

[slick1ru2]

The ground breaking ruling by the Supreme Court that made exclusive deals illegal with the NFL, ruled it is NOT a sole entity but made up of 32 entities does NOT go into effect until 2014. That is why this deal is so short. The NFL did the same thing with the DirecTV contract, extended it to finish at the deadline in 2014.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/0..._n_587277.html

Law Prof explains how it may effect the EA deal.

http://www.ripten.com/2010/05/28/spo...ing-agreement/

[DonRSD]

Originally Posted by slick1ru2

The ground breaking ruling by the Supreme Court that made exclusive deals illegal with the NFL, ruled it is NOT a sole entity but made up of 32 entities does NOT go into effect until 2014. That is why this deal is so short. The NFL did the same thing with the DirecTV contract, extended it to finish at the deadline in 2014.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/0..._n_587277.html

Law Prof explains how it may effect the EA deal.

http://www.ripten.com/2010/05/28/spo...ing-agreement/

great read.

2014 cant come quick enough.
NFL 2k series

you still have apf 2k8? lets get a game in

[slick1ru2]

Originally Posted by DonRSD

great read.

2014 cant come quick enough.
NFL 2k series

you still have apf 2k8? lets get a game in

Yes I do. I would have to play for it a couple of days, the controls being different then Madden. I will get it out, start playing some and be ready next week.