EA and Bioware are a few short weeks away from launching Bioware’s first MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic. Analysts believe the game could be big for the company, but Bobby Kotick, CEO for rival publisher Activision Blizzard thinks EA doesn’t know what it’s getting into.
"Lucas is going to be the principal beneficiary of the success of Star Wars," Kotick said at the Reuters Media Summit. "We've been in business with Lucas for a long time and the economics will always accrue to the benefit of Lucas, so I don't really understand how the economics work for Electronic Arts."
Kotick also noted how difficult it is to launch a successful MMO, with publishers like Square Enix and Atari having failed in the past.
"If you look at the history of the people investing in an MMO and achieving success, it's a small number," Kotick said.
Analysts are still predicting a modest success for the game. Lazard analyst Atul Bagga has previously predicted 1.5 to 2 million subscribers for the MMO, and recently estimated that 3 to 4 million World of Warcraft players could jump ship to SWTOR.
