Electronic Arts Signs Tiger Woods
SAN MATEO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1998 FEB 19 (Newsbytes) -- By Bob
Woods, Newsbytes. A new deal with one of the world's most notable
athletes put a tiger in Electronic Arts' stock price  late Thursday
morning.  On the heels of a licensing deal with golf phenom Tiger
Woods via swooshy athletic shoe maker Nike,  EA's stock was up $3.875
or almost ten percent on Wall Street in very heavy trading.  Nike
stock was down $0.063 at $44.563 in late morning trading on Thursday.
Woods' stock, which fluctuates weekly depending on how he performs in
golf tournaments, is usually up.
EA inked a four year contract with Woods through Nike, which holds
licensing rights for the young golfer, EA officials said. Financial
details of the four-year arrangement were not released, but EA
acknowledged the deal "represents perhaps the most highly-prized deal
in the history of the interactive sports industry."   EA President
John Riccitiello told Newsbytes said that Woods' presence on his
company's products should boost EA's share of the PC golf game market
from number two to number one. EA is already number one on the
PlayStation side of the market, he said.
Riccitiello also said that he expects the interactive golf game market
in general -- which is small compared to other games like football and
basketball -- to grow because of Woods' involvement.  While not
quoting any specific numbers, Riccitiello said that the new Woods
title could bring revenues of somewhere between a "solid" sports title
that usually makes of $50 to $100 million dollars in the first year,
to a "AA" title that normally brings in more than $100 million dollars
a year.
Initial plans call for EA's "EA Sports" brand to release a Tiger Woods
golf game for personal computers (PCs) and Sony's PlayStation game
console in the summer of 1998, officials said.  Riccitiello also said
that Woods' involvement in the new game goes beyond just "slapping his
name on the box." The EA president said that Woods' golf style is
utilized via motion capture technology, and that his personality is
shown in the game.  Digital duffers can expect to see Tiger Woods'
signature booming drives and pumping arm celebrations in the summer
product release, for example.
He also said that Woods was involved in "how the game meets the
computer;" for example, Woods said that a prior EA Sports golf game
needed to be speeded up, so that improvement will show up in the
Woods-titled program. A news release put out by EA Sports went as far
as to call Woods a part of the "second generation of co-designers" for
new game titles.  Woods joins 14 other PGA Tour pros, including Peter
Jacobsen, Brad Faxon, Tom Kite, Lee Janzen, and Davis Love III in
future versions of the PGA Tour product line.
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