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EA set to throw its weight behind Android

Sees a shift in the smartphone balance

EA set to throw its weight behind Android
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It seems everyone wants a slice of the Android gaming pie all of a sudden.

With OpenFeint bringing its social networking charms (along with 20 games) to the platform, id Software advertising for an Android developer, and Epic bringing Unreal Engine 3 to the platform, all we need now is a vote of confidence from a major publisher.

Step forward EA. Speaking at the Deutsche Bank 2010 Technology Conference, the company’s CFO Eric Brown has been making some very positive noises about Google’s mobile platform.

Brown cited a report stating that Android was expected to own 25 per cent of the smartphone market by 2014 compared to Apple’s 11 per cent. “There's a lot to happen in the future in Android,” said Brown, “and we’re trying to position our mobile business to take advantage of that trend."

He also pointed to the next major area that Android needs to improve in, saying: "I think the next big positive wave to push better growth in mobile will be the deployment of an App Store equivalent for the Android operating system."

Brown likened the current transition from normal mobile phones to the likes of iPhone and Android as being, “like going through a PS2 to PS3 transition."

What, going from a hugely popular mass-market device to a less popular and overpriced successor? We’re sure he doesn’t mean that.

Gamasutra
Jon Mundy
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.