It’s no secret that digital marketplaces are growing more and more popular with each passing year. EA Sports vice president Andrew Wilson thinks it could possibly lead to a bleak future for retailers.
Wilson explained that videogame stores like GameStop may lose business in the coming years.
"There will come a day where I think that people will stop going into Game and GameStop," he said. "And I use those purely as examples of retail."
He then went on to highlight the importance of the consumer’s needs, saying, "It’s important for retailers and us to understand what the consumer wants in the future."
According to Wilson, putting one’s complete faith in the hands of the consumer can be a scary thing.
"The reality is what we’re doing, which is very uncomfortable, which is putting the control in the hands of the consumer and letting them decide how they want to play," he said. "And when you do that it makes us all just a little bit nervous because as humans, in our DNA, we like to have control. Giving control to anyone – our parents, our teachers, our bosses, our kids – is scary. It’s going to be a fun time."
Just last week EA bought PopCap Games in a billion dollar deal, and the company has also launched its own digital distribution shop, called Origin. So it looks like EA is preparing itself for a future where downloadable games may be the focus.
