StingingVelvet wrote on Jul 20, 2011, 15:30:

Dev wrote on Jul 20, 2011, 15:18:
Yeah... no. They SHOULD plan far ahead, but most don't from what I've seen. They take short term gains over long term far far too often.

I don't think you and I are really talking about the same thing. Yes, profit-wise they do obsess on quarterly reports. What I mean is more along the lines of long-term business mutations and planning for emerging or changing markets.

For example almost everything Microsoft is doing right now is geared toward planning for a future where the home PC, including a laptop, is dead. Apple are doing much better at that, but MS is still gearing up for it. When I say EA are thinking very far ahead I am talking about the shifting market toward online services and direct online distribution through the PC and mobile. Valve thought very far ahead with Steam when Half-Life 2 came out.