MARCH 7, 2008 • FIFA Online 2 will launch in Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam during the thirdquarter. EA is partnering with IAH Games in Singapore to launch the game in those markets, plus seven more countries in Asia to follow later. FIFA Online is already a success in Korea, with more than 5 million users. EA made the announcement at its new Asian headquarters located in Singapore.
Impact: While Madden gets all the attention in the U.S., soccer video games are by far the biggest sports games on a worldwide basis. In Asia, the FIFA brand is well known, but mainly because it has been widely pirated. Like World of Warcraft before it, an online model can be a way for EA to generate real revenue from a brand that was established illegally.
