EA Won't Focus on NFTs; At Least for Now
EA has no intention of releasing games using the NFT technology for the time being. However, the company will reconsider the issue in the future.
- EA's CEO stated that the company does not intend to focus on the NFT technology;
- This is a change in approach from the statement made a few months ago;
- However, Andrew Wilson indicated that EA will reassess the potential of NFTs in the future.
Just a year ago, EA considered NFTs to be the future of the industry. As you can see, things have changed a bit. Andrew Wilson, CEO of the company, stated during an investor call that the publisher does not intend to focus on the aforementioned technology for the time being (via VGC). This does not mean, however, that EA will not return to this topic in the future.
“I believe that collectability will continue to be an important part of our industry and the games and the experiences that we offer our players. Whether that’s part of NFTs and the blockchain, well that remains to be seen. And I think the way we think about it is, we want to deliver the best possible player experience we can. And so, we’ll evaluate that over time, but right now it’s not something that we’re driving hard against.”
So for now, fans of EA games can rest assured that the company's titles will not be replaced by play-to-earn games and NFT exchange markets. At least for now, because Wilson left himself an open door to change his mind in the future.
The decision to withdraw from earlier assurances that NFT is the future of the industry may also be associated with a desire to take care of PR image. Recently, many companies have been attacked for their willingness to use the new technology. Just to mention Team17, which yesterday had to abandon its plans, or GSC Game World, which abandoned the idea of introducing NFTs to STALKER 2.
On the other side of the barricade we have other, much larger companies such as Ubisoft and SEGA, who are apparently confident in their decisions. Recently, the blockchain manager of the French publisher stated, that the controversy surrounding NFTs stems from a lack of user knowledge. The fact that many large companies are still interested in this technology suggests that the latest statement of EA's CEO does not mean a definitive closure of the topic.
