COPYCENSE

"Electronic Arts, hoping to shore up its eroding dominance in the sports video game market, said yesterday that it had signed a 15-year deal giving it the exclusive right to use the ESPN brand in games.

"Under the agreement, Electronic Arts, the largest independent video game publisher, will pay $750 million to $850 million for the right to use the ESPN brand for games based on at least nine sports, including baseball, basketball and football, according to people briefed on the contract’s terms. Some of that money will pay for commercials promoting the games on ESPN channels, they said.

"Beyond the deal’s length, which is substantial by industry standards, it comes at a significant juncture in the video game business. In the last year, Electronic Arts’ long-dominant position selling sports games has come under assault amid heavy price competition."

Matt Richtel.
Electronic Arts and ESPN Sign 15-Year Deal to Sell Games. The New York Times. Jan. 18, 2005.

See also:
Reuters. Electronic Arts Signs Licensing Deal with ESPN. News.com. Jan. 17, 2005.

David Becker. Electronic Arts Plays Hardball. News.com. Jan. 18, 2005.

(Editor�s Note: The Times allows free access to their stories on the Web for seven days before sending the stories to the paper�s fee-based Archive.)

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