Beware The Ides Of March For The NFL Exclusive License

[Big FN Deal]

There has been some discussion on various opinions of what the future may hold for the exclusive license but very little if any opinions on a renewal deadline.

Would no announcement of an extension by mid-February to mid-March 2012, make you believe there is a greater chance of the NFL exclusive license not being renewed or not? If not, is there any date short of early February 2014, the end of the 2013-14 NFL season when the current NFL exclusive license would presumably officially expire, that would?

[KBLover]

Quote: Originally Posted by Big FN Deal

There has been some discussion on various opinions of what the future may hold for the exclusive license but very little if any opinions on a renewal deadline. Would no announcement of an extension by mid-February to mid-March 2012, make you believe there is a greater chance of the NFL exclusive license not being renewed or not? If not, is there any date short of early February 2014, the end of the 2013-14 NFL season when the current NFL exclusive license would presumably officially expire, that would?

Maybe by end of 2012-2013 season? The game would come out in August 2013 for M14. So I would figure that would be about the latest they could decide for M14 and forward?

[roadman]

No, I don't have a deadline one way or the other.

I just don't care anymore.

I would love competition and the license to expire, but it won't impact my life one way or the other.

I just don't get too worried what might or might not happen, especially, when it's out of my hands and not in my control.

[Big FN Deal]

Quote: Originally Posted by KBLover

Maybe by end of 2012-2013 season? The game would come out in August 2013 for M14. So I would figure that would be about the latest they could decide for M14 and forward?

So around February 2013 then. I thought of that myself and actually originally became confused about what the date was for the license ending, thinking it would be one year earlier. Almost decided not to post this because of it until I realized that both previous renewals came around the same time, two years out from the license expiring.

I suppose EA can't just call the NFL at the last minute to re-up, so there seems to have to be some at least tentative deadline for getting it done. With EA currently claiming to have a 3 year business plan for Madden, I would think that if a renewal of the NFL exclusive license was part of it, that renewal would happen sooner than 1 year from expiration, like it has twice already.

[kjcheezhead]

Quote: Originally Posted by KBLover

Welcome to capitalism? I mean, that's what businesses do. Increase demand by making a product that gets people to buy it and keep wanting it and higher demand + "addiction" = higher price point before demand falls. It's not screwing anyone. Like you said, the consumer has the ultimate choice. The $$$ are yours until you give them up.

True, which is why the current market isn't great for consumers. The NFL is so popular it is free to set much higher prices and limit it's products. If the NFL were to lose a bit of popularity and then gap between the NFL and the other leagues like MLB and NBA becomes smaller. The NFL would be put in a position where it would be beneficial to add more merchandise, clothing, video games and lower their prices in order to prevent the other leagues from getting those consumer dollars.

No one is getting screwed and it is the market working as it should. I don't believe the NFL being as powerful as it is is anything consumers of NFL products should be real excited about tho.

[Big FN Deal]

Quote: Originally Posted by roadman

No, I don't have a deadline one way or the other. I just don't care anymore. I would love competition and the license to expire, but it won't impact my life one way or the other. I just don't get too worried what might or might not happen, especially, when it's out of my hands and not in my control.

I feel you on this Roadman and would tend to agree except the part about not caring anymore. I care in the sense that I find it interesting to discuss the merits of what's taking place in regards to the NFL license and sports simulation gaming in general, apart from my personal feelings as a long time avid NFL gamer. It's sort of personally therapeutic for me like having your favorite band break-up, missing their music but still watching VH-1's "Behind the Music" to try and figure out what actually happened. NFL video games, like music, is a part of pop culture and easy for someone like me to get attached to given my joyful interest in the NFL.

That said, I don't care in the sense of having my feelings tied up in whatever happens, anymore that is, lol. Like many have alluded to, the exclusive license seems to have little connection to if Madden improves because there wouldn't seem to be a viable alternative for some years to come anyway, which is part of reason I think it might be let go. However, I believe Madden has to and will make strong annual pushes towards NFL authenticity in order to increase sells in this frugal consumer economy against their biggest figurative rival, the actual NFL. Which is another part of my belief for the exclusive potentially being let go, continued increased investment of R&D for authenticity.

I think TNT has alluded to this trend when mentioning the increased graphical realism every year causing an increased consumer expectation in the gameplay, player movement, interactions and NFL nuances. Even Ian stated something to the affect of they learned that everything has to be advanced together instead of a piecemeal approach of advancing one thing drastically like graphics and baby stepping gameplay. Factor that in with the increased authenticity of other leading sports simulations on the market and Madden has to improve or become obsolete, with or without the an exclusive NFL license.


Anyway, it just seems to me there would logically have to be some deadline for renewing the license and I am going by what happened the past two times as a potential indicator of it.

[Big FN Deal]

Quote: Originally Posted by kjcheezhead

True, which is why the current market isn't great for consumers. The NFL is so popular it is free to set much higher prices and limit it's products. If the NFL were to lose a bit of popularity and then gap between the NFL and the other leagues like MLB and NBA becomes smaller. The NFL would be put in a position where it would be beneficial to add more merchandise, clothing, video games and lower their prices in order to prevent the other leagues from getting those consumer dollars. No one is getting screwed and it is the market working as it should. I don't believe the NFL being as powerful as it is is anything consumers of NFL products should be real excited about tho.

Yeah but like you alluded to, the current market is what consumers make of it or allow it to be. The thing about capitalism is it creates a system where all people have an equal say in what happens in the market through their purchases but this is only ideal for the consumer if the majority are accurately informed enough to make knowledgeable decisions. The problem is, some consumers are knowledgeable, some consumers admittedly aren't and the majority are usually inaccurately informed but think they are knowledgeable.

That majority, which in most cases receives their information about the market from the very companies selling the products and services on the market, are allowing themselves to be unknowingly manipulated by whichever companies have the greatest resources to supply them with the most information or misinformation.

Capitalism like Democracy is a system that grants all power to the people but for that power to potentially benefit all the people, a majority must be accurately informed enough to make knowledgeable decisions for the common good.

That's why I appreciate all the diverse sources of information available on the internet and OS, to be discussed from different people's POV. That's probably the best way to come as close to accurate information as we can get with NFL football gaming.

[roadman]

Quote: Originally Posted by Iggles

I've been lurking in this thread for a bit, and nobody( unless I missed it) is really touching on the fact that last year, during the middle of February, EA extended the license, but only for one year. The first time they extended it, it was the second to last year of the deal, and they extended it for three years. Now, why is that ? We know that there's no reason for NFL not to be in favor of a multi-year extension, so it must have been EA that was opposed to it ? Now we don't know if they intend on extending the deal, but if they are, why didn't they do it last year around this time ?

I'm hedging my guess, but I think the lockout had something to do with it. The NFL gave EA a break on the cost of it.

Maybe each party in Feb didn't know how the lockout would shake out.

[Big FN Deal]

Quote: Originally Posted by Iggles

I've been lurking in this thread for a bit, and nobody( unless I missed it) is really touching on the fact that last year, during the middle of February, EA extended the license, but only for one year. The first time they extended it, it was the second to last year of the deal, and they extended it for three years. Now, why is that ? We know that there's no reason for NFL not to be in favor of a multi-year extension, so it must have been EA that was opposed to it ? Now we don't know if they intend on extending the deal, but if they are, why didn't they do it last year around this time ?

This is a good point and Roadman offers a plausible reason, imo. However, I would also add, could be that one year extension was an amicable way for EA to get it's full value of this years license cost without the NFL having to refund any money. Meaning, since there was then a potential lockout being projected to hurt Madden's profits, rather than the NFL directly refunding money to EA, a one year extension at a reduced cost was decided.

Think of it as having a prepaid year subscription to Xbox Live and the service goes down for half the month of March. So instead of Microsoft refunding half of March's subscription cost, they offer an extra full month at half price.

Now, I don't really know how relevant that would be to whether or not the exclusive will be extended though. Seems like the time came for negotiating the NFL exclusive license and it doesn't seem to make a lot of business sense for the NFL to negotiate a long term deal for licensing with EA before a long term CBA was in place, to Roadman's point.

That's why I am much more focused on the timing of the extension than the actual specifics of the extension itself, right now.

[roadman]

And in due time, we will all find out, whether it's 2 months from now or 12 months from now.