Consoles With Disc Drives Aren't Going Anywhere, EA Executive Says

By Patrick Leonard Mayo, Christian Post Contributor Thursday, December 07, 2017

With the gaming landscape continuously changing at a very fast rate, people are wondering if games will completely go digital in the coming years, which will make disc drives obsolete. Though the thought may become a reality, it will likely not happen anytime soon.

Speaking in a Nasdaq event on Tuesday, Electronic Arts (EA) CFO Blake Jorgensen expressed his take on the matter, noting that consoles sporting disc drives will remain on the scene longer than expected. "Consoles and disc drives probably stay around for a long period of time," the EA boss said.

"I think it's the consumer deciding what's the easiest way for them to buy a game. And it may mean they no longer have a store down the street from them so they decide to buy it [digitally] maybe it's easier for them to do," Jorgensen expounded.

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Jorgensen noted some of the key advantages digital gaming offer. These include the ability to pre-load games. He also said that the current download rate for EA console games hovers around the 30 percent range, while the PC games stand somewhere between 80 to 90 percent. In addition, he also mentioned the company's partnerships with physical retailers, though at the end of the day, it is still the consumers who will decide how they want to acquire their games.

Last month, Jorgensen confirmed during the UBS Global Technology Conference that EA will start offering its game streaming service in the next few years. The service, however, will be pulled off with the help of another company, whose identity he did not reveal.

"I think you'll see a commercial offering probably in the next 2-3 years from us and a partner," said the EA CFO, while mentioning some of the challenges that have kept them from offering the service in the past. Jorgensen said that what has kept them from offering game streaming is the lack of widespread data centers, which could equate to a poor experience on the part of the gamers who are situated away from the centers.