EA Entertainment and EA Sports separate, giving more freedom to each

EA has announced a consolidating between their Sports and Entertainment section giving them separate teams for both sides of the business.

In the blog post from the CEO of EA Games, Andrew Wilson announced the separate teams and the reasoning why. Wilson acknowledged the creative ability of his teams and the need to give certain creators better tools instead of a one size fits all approach.

"Engaging these growing audiences represents incredible opportunities for our teams to entertain massive online communities, create blockbuster interactive storytelling, and amplify the power of community in and around our games with social and creator tools. Creativity and innovation have always been the foundation of everything we do. Now, we must further empower our creative teams so that we might realize our strategic vision."

Wilson also stated that the separate teams will give more financial and creative responsibility with accountability to the leadership of the respective teams.

"Today, we are announcing the next step of our strategy by aligning our studios into two organizations that report to me — EA Entertainment and EA SPORTS. This evolution of our company continues to empower our studio leaders with more creative ownership and financial accountability to make faster and more insightful decisions around development and go to market strategies. These steps will accelerate our business, drive growth, and deliver long-term value for our people, our players and our communities."

He also introduced Laura Miele who has been appointed the President of EA Entertainment, Technology & Central Development. Before her appointment, she was the Chief Studio Officer and led EA Worldwide. She was the head of the studios that created Battlefield, Need for Speed, and the vast library of EA Sports titles. Laura brings 22 years of experience in marketing and analytics to the table in her new role. She also serves on the board of Silicon Valley Community Foundation.

Working under her is the legendary game designer Vince Zampella who is known for taking Call of Duty to the heights of what it is and the Battlefield franchise to what it is now. Samatha Ryan will continue to lead the singe-player titles, and Jeff Karp will lead mobile games.

Today also announced the appointment of Cam Webber has been appointed to President of EA Sports. Webber has been working as leadership on the acclaimed Madden Franchise for many years and will now take over the entire EA Sports studio.

Ending the post, Wilson stated:

"Over the coming months, Stuart, Laura, Cam, and David will partner closely with studio leaders to implement these organizational changes, further embedding dedicated capabilities into franchise teams and driving operational rigor. Chief Strategy Officer Mihir Vaidya will now report directly to me, and together with Chief People Officer Mala Singh and Chief Legal Officer Jake Schatz, our entire management team is focused on executing our core strategies to drive results."

Anything that makes games better in my mind is worth it. Let’s hope the team can continue to make great experiences for gamers worldwide.