Activision blames increased dues for ESA departure

When Activision announced it was canceling (or not renewing?) its Entertainment Software Association (ESA) membership, many speculated the choice was a result of rising membership costs and the leadership capabilities of ESA President Michael Gallagher. This theory started to make even more sense after LucasArts, id Software, and Crave Entertainment all announced within weeks of each other that they were also leaving the ESA.

Although all the companies expressed well wishes to the ESA, Crave and Activision decided to delve into the specifics of its decision. Crave gave the simple explanation that the company is now for sale so it really had no choice. Activision, however, took a bolder stance.

Speaking with Variety, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick shined some light on the situation. It seems Kotick was looking into the future when he made the choice not to continue membership. He didn’t mention Gallagher as being a specific factor. It turns out the merger of Activision and Blizzard caused dues to rise beyond what the company was willing to pay. Kotick said, “With the combined companies, the dues went up enough that I said for it to make sense [to spend that money], we have to make a strategic plan.”

Another reason why Activision Blizzard left was because of its growing independence. Activision Blizzard relies heavily on monthly subscriptions from players of World of Warcraft which makes them more interested in international affairs than other publishers. Frankly Kotick doesn’t think the ESA can quite handle the load of managing the affairs of a powerhouse such as this. Currently Activision Blizzard is looking for their own worthy candidate to expand its billion dollar reach. As for a possible reunion with the ESA, Kotick simply said, “We’ll consider it.”

Read [Variety] Via [Kotaku]