Don't Expect a Change in the NFL License Status Quo

[howboutdat]

this news flat out SUCKS! if ea listens to the players that much , then why are so many unhappy with it? but honestly its ok , cause the NFL is turning the NFL into flag , dont hit no one , just hug them to the ground ball anyways . so in a few years we wont want to be playing an nfl video game anyways. all these new rules they keep making , makes the nfl suckier , not healthier. so . with that , i say , go for it ea..... ride this failue right on out on ur own! so im saying the NFL and EA are made for each other...... enjoy

[JayMizzle]

IN ORDER FOR THE NFL TO LISTEN TO US (Simulation Fans) WE MUST BOYCOTT MADDEN. Plain and simple....capital falls, so does the exclusive license. Money is the only way to catch their attention...Sad, but it's the world we live in. Greed man....greed.

[jesse_8711]

For the Record: If I don't see glitches taken out of the game i will not buy it, if there are no new OL/DL interactions i will not buy it, if there are no new WR/DB interactions i will not buy it, if there are no TRUE physics i will not buy it, if CCM isn't fixed i will not buy it.......this is all i have to say

[tbook24]

ok so you wanna licensethe game thats cool.but then dont license it to a certain system afterward. the gameplayed better prior to tis exclusive 360 deal. we need both systems all hands on deck if this is going to be the only nfl game

[balcobomber25]

If I had said 5 years ago that THQ would not only lose the WWE license but go through one of the ugliest bankruptcies in modern history, people would have called me a lunatic. Anything can happen in the world of video games. EA isn't in the financial climate that they were when they first acquired the exclusive deal, in December of 2004 when EA inked the exclusive deal they were trading at $55 a share, today they are down $17 a share. EA is on the verge of hiring a new CEO, no body knows what his vision for the company is going to be, or when he is going to be hired. The board of directors most likely have a freeze on any long term commitments till a new CEO is hired. Everyone is forgetting that we are on the verge of the next gen system, no matter which company (if any) gets an exclusive deal they have to build a new game from the ground up, including EA, so that is a moot point.

[roadman]

I think people here are aware of EA's financial situation and this means EA could renogiate a deal that is much lower than what they paid before as CrimsonTide alluded to previously in here.

We'll all find out soon enough.

[balcobomber25]

Quote: Originally Posted by roadman

I think people here are aware of EA's financial situation and this means EA could renogiate a deal that is much lower than what they paid before as CrimsonTide alluded to previously in here. We'll all find out soon enough.

Why in the world would the NFL, a multi-billion dollar organization who has shown its ruthless when it comes to business decisions, agree to a lower deal than what was paid in 2004?? If anything they would be looking for a bigger deal. The NFL does not care about EA's financial troubles, they care about the NFL's bottom dollar, if EA doesnt agree to their terms its on to the next highest bidder. Don't assume just because Take Two and EA are the only main sports game publishers that they would be the only bidders either. Activision Bizzard, Ubisoft, and Square Enix have just as much capital as those two and have all been known to bid on high profile franchises, not to mention the big 3 (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo). How much do you think Msoft would pay to make NFL games exclusive to the Xbox?

[roadman]

Quote: Originally Posted by balcobomber25

Why in the world would the NFL, a multi-billion dollar organization who has shown its ruthless when it comes to business decisions, agree to a lower deal than what was paid in 2004?? If anything they would be looking for a bigger deal. The NFL does not care about EA's financial troubles, they care about the NFL's bottom dollar, if EA doesnt agree to their terms its on to the next highest bidder. Don't assume just because Take Two and EA are the only main sports game publishers that they would be the only bidders either. Activision Bizzard, Ubisoft, and Square Enix have just as much capital as those two and have all been known to bid on high profile franchises, not to mention the big 3 (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo). How much do you think Msoft would pay to make NFL games exclusive to the Xbox?

The NFL lowered the last liscense agreement, didn't they?

So, you don't think negotiations ever take place? NFL offers one price, EA counters with another? I'd say that is pure speculation that the NFL doesn't care about EA's financial troubles. They currently are business partners. They have established a relationship. Businesses extend discounts a lot in the business world to their business partners. It's not all black and white, I'm sure there are other considerations to factor into the equation.

John Madden is also an advisor to the NFL. As I stated earlier, if people feel that Goodell and company will kick John Madden to the curb, not positive that would happen.

We'll see in the coming year.

Bottom line, I hope it doesn't come down to one bidder, I hope it's an open liscense and bring in more competition, but the NFL chooses exclusive business models