Bizpunk, a blog by former Electronic Arts executive vice president of mobile and online Mitch Lasky, is highly critical of EA 's business dealings in several areas, notably the transition to a digitally distributed future, saying, "EA is in the wrong business, with the wrong cost structure and the wrong team, but somehow they seem to think that it is going to be a smooth, two-year transition from packaged goods to digital." Lasky, a partner at tech investment firm Benchmark Capital, recounts outlining a plan to cut costs and prepare for a games-as-services future and being told by EA execs at the time, "they literally couldn't imagine going to Wall Street with a message of increased profitability rather than top-line revenue growth." He describes his take on the current state of EA's business: "The old EA model was a basically a three-legged stool: 1) a profitable, recurring sports business (Madden, FIFA); 2) franchise games that produced big hits on a less frequent basis (The Sims, Need for Speed, Command & Conquer); and 3) a collection of digital assets (e.g.: Pogo & JAMDAT, and now Playfish) and distribution/partnership titles (e.g.: Rock Band & Left 4 Dead). Of those, the only stool leg left intact is the third one. Without the digital assets and the EA Distribution titles, they'd be in even more serious hot water." Thanks
Gamasutra.