EA boss Andrew Wilson says live service titles are "powering" its business

Live service games continue to be the jewel in EA's crown, and according to company CEO Andrew Wilson are "powering the business."

As highlighted in EA's fiscal report for the second quarter ended September 30, 2022, net bookings decreased by 5 percent year-on-year to $1.75 billion, with live service net bookings representing the majority of that total.

Digging a little deeper, quarterly live service net bookings decreased by 3 percent year-on-year to $1.19 billion, with quarterly full game net bookings dipping by 9 percent to $635 million. Console platforms continue to pull in the bulk of the cash for EA, with console net bookings for the quarter totalling $1.02 billion compared with $431 million on PC and $296 million on mobile.

EA also noted that its player network grew to more than 600 million active accounts during the second quarter, and praised the performance of FIFA 23, which it described as the "most successful launch in franchise history" with over 10.3 million players.

"Based on the first four weeks following launch, EA Sports FIFA 23 units (sell-through) are up 10 percent and Ultimate Team players are up 6 percent on the comparable period for FIFA 22," added the publisher.

Commenting on EA's quarterly performance, CEO Andrew Wilson said the company delivered a "solid quarter" despite quarterly net bookings suffering a year-on-year dip.

"In Q2, EA delivered strong engagement and deeply immersive experiences across our portfolio, with new EA SPORTS titles and multi-platform live services powering the business," said Wilson. "More people than ever before are turning to games as their primary platform for social connection and creativity. With EA’s unrivaled IP, talented teams, and growing player network, we are well-positioned to lead the future of entertainment."

"Q2 was a solid quarter. We again delivered on our revenue and profit commitments, driven by our EA SPORTS portfolio and our multi-platform live services business,” said CFO Chris Suh. “With our resilient business model, disciplined execution, and healthy underlying fundamentals, we are poised to deliver long-term growth."

Looking ahead, EA expects full-year net revenue to total between $7.55 billion and $7.75 billion by the end of the fiscal year on March 31, 2023.