Riccitiello compares piracy to pre-owned

John Riccitiello has stated that the emerging force that is post-release downloadable content is the key tool in battling both the pre-owned market and piracy.

The consumer seems to really like this idea that there is extra stuff,” Riccitiello told Nightly Business Report. The consumer wants more, and when you sell them more it seems to be extremely well received.

There’s a sizable pirate market and a sizable second sale market and we want to try to generate revenue in that marketplace.

Riccitiello also stated that EA has already sold 1m pieces of DLC for its recently released RPG Dragon Age.

I don’t think anybody should pirate anything,” he added. I believe in the artistry of the people who build. I profoundly believe that, and when you steal from us, you steal from them. Having said that, there are a lot of people who do.”

In describing piracy as a market, Riccitiello takes a different stance to most other entertainment execs in two key areas.

Firstly, the lumping together of both pre-owned and pirated games into a single spectrum is as big an attack on trade-ins as we’ve heard from a major publisher boss.

Secondly, in describing piracy as a ‘market’, Riccitiello again distances himself from established thinking. Most choose to battle piracy via litigation, but there is a school of thought that claims piracy can never be beaten – figuring out how to lessen its appeal to consumers, such people, claim, is the key.