Wed, Jan 12, 2011 | 07:13 GMT

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Riccitiello: Discs not going anywhere, but EA make services, not products

After causing an epidemic of heart complaints with some startling digital revenue figures, EA boss John Riccitiello has applied the cardiac paddles by soothingly agreeing that physical media will be around for quite some time yet.

But just because you have a really truly disc you can hold in your hands doesn’t mean we’re out of the woods, yet; the CEO believes games are “services”, not “products”.

“Do I believe longer term that the disc will go away? Not any time soon,” Riccitello told Industry Gamers, adding that he believes consumers don’t necessarily want a streaming game service. “I think they want their games to work.”

But the CEO’s support of physical media seems to extend only as far as it serves as a platform for online services. “The disc can actually be a great starting point for a digital business, like an MMO, World of Warcraft, for instance,” he offered in its defence.

“We make services, we don’t make products.”

Riccitiello’s comments follow on from an earlier extract suggesting digital revenue is the industry’s future – and near future, at that.

Thanks, GoNintendo. Photo via GamersMint.

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