EA closes Westwood Studios
01-30-03, 06:13 AM
#1
DVD Talk Legend
Thread Starter
EA closes Westwood Studios
EA is planning to dissolve Westwood studios and EA Pacific to save money. They're also letting 50 people go. :/
http://www.homelanfed.com/index.php?id=11689
The End Of Westwood And EA Pacific - 29 January 2003 15:18 - John [JCal] Callaham User Comments : 0
This press release from Electronic Arts announces the results of the game publisher's third quarter 2003 fiscal year results, and as expected the largest third party console-PC game publisher had a record quarter with revenues of $1.23 billion for the period(October-December 2002), up 48 percent from the same quarter last year. Games like Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, James Bond 007: Nightfire, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and Medal of Homor: Frontline helped to bring EA's quarter higher. The highly anticipated Sims Online game has so far sold 105,000 copies with 82,000 registered players.
However, the biggest surprise in the EA financial statement was this: "In the fourth quarter, EA will begin the consolidation of our Los Angeles, Irvine and Las Vegas studios into a major game development studio in Los Angeles." Based on this statement, this means the end of both Westwood Studios (Las Vegas) and EA Pacific (Irvine). This Reuters story quotes EA's chief financial officer Warren Jenson saying that 50 jobs will be cut as a result of the consolidation. HomeLAN is trying to contact EA represenatives and will get more info on this situation.
This press release from Electronic Arts announces the results of the game publisher's third quarter 2003 fiscal year results, and as expected the largest third party console-PC game publisher had a record quarter with revenues of $1.23 billion for the period(October-December 2002), up 48 percent from the same quarter last year. Games like Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, James Bond 007: Nightfire, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, and Medal of Homor: Frontline helped to bring EA's quarter higher. The highly anticipated Sims Online game has so far sold 105,000 copies with 82,000 registered players.
However, the biggest surprise in the EA financial statement was this: "In the fourth quarter, EA will begin the consolidation of our Los Angeles, Irvine and Las Vegas studios into a major game development studio in Los Angeles." Based on this statement, this means the end of both Westwood Studios (Las Vegas) and EA Pacific (Irvine). This Reuters story quotes EA's chief financial officer Warren Jenson saying that 50 jobs will be cut as a result of the consolidation. HomeLAN is trying to contact EA represenatives and will get more info on this situation.
01-30-03, 06:51 AM
#3
DVD Talk Legend
Thread Starter
Originally posted by tanman
Does this mean no more Command and Conquer games?!
Does this mean no more Command and Conquer games?!
More On Westwood; EA Pacific Closing - 29 January 2003 17:27 - John [JCal] Callaham User Comments : 0
HomeLAN has more information on the closings of both Westwood Studios and EA Pacific as announced by Electronic Arts earlier today. EA's Vice-President of Corporate Communications Jeff Brown told HomeLAN this evening in a phone interview that the new consolidated Los Angeles EA studio (which currently handles the Medal of Honor series) will be the new development home for the Command and Conquer franchise. Most of the C&C: Generals team will be moved to the new LA studio and Brown said there are still plans for new C&C titles in the future.
or players of Westwood's massively multiplayer RPG Earth and Beyond, Brown told HomeLAN that the game's servers and support will be moved to EA's Redwood Shores, CA studios (where Motor City Online is based) in about a month after the closing of Westwood's Las Vegas offices. The transition should be seemless for players, according to Brown. Brown stated that Earth and Beyond's subscriber base is growing and that EA still plans to support the game. The new LA studio will be moved into a new building this summer, according to Brown, and will have 200 employees at first but Brown told HomeLAN that EA plans to hire as many as 300 more people for the new EALA studio within the next year after the move.
HomeLAN has more information on the closings of both Westwood Studios and EA Pacific as announced by Electronic Arts earlier today. EA's Vice-President of Corporate Communications Jeff Brown told HomeLAN this evening in a phone interview that the new consolidated Los Angeles EA studio (which currently handles the Medal of Honor series) will be the new development home for the Command and Conquer franchise. Most of the C&C: Generals team will be moved to the new LA studio and Brown said there are still plans for new C&C titles in the future.
or players of Westwood's massively multiplayer RPG Earth and Beyond, Brown told HomeLAN that the game's servers and support will be moved to EA's Redwood Shores, CA studios (where Motor City Online is based) in about a month after the closing of Westwood's Las Vegas offices. The transition should be seemless for players, according to Brown. Brown stated that Earth and Beyond's subscriber base is growing and that EA still plans to support the game. The new LA studio will be moved into a new building this summer, according to Brown, and will have 200 employees at first but Brown told HomeLAN that EA plans to hire as many as 300 more people for the new EALA studio within the next year after the move.
