EA Considering ‘Sims’-Like TV Show
Electronic Arts Inc., the world’s biggest video game publisher, is considering an interactive TV show in Europe that would let viewers control the actions of the characters as in its popular game “The Sims.”
“One idea could be that you’re controlling a family, telling them when to go to the kitchen and when to go to the bedroom, and with this mechanism you have gamers all over the world playing the show,” said Jan Bolz, vice president of marketing and sales for EA Europe.
EA confirmed that it was in talks with several TV production companies. Bolz declined to disclose any additional details.
Shares of Redwood City, Calif.-based EA rose $1.55 to $59.84 on Nasdaq.
From Reuters
* U.S. video game sales fell 1% in December to $1.69 billion, with sales of titles for Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 2 console dropping 8.9% while those for Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox jumped 20%.
