price – MMO Fallout

Humble Monthly is rebranding as Humble Choice and that can only mean one thing: Higher prices? Check. Lower value? Double check. Holding current subscribers hostage? Triple check.

Humble Monthly is a pretty damn good deal if you look at it. $12 per month or $132 per year for ten games per month is crazy. Add in the fact that they offer some otherwise expensive titles like Spyro and Crash Bandicoot and you’ve got an even better deal. Don’t like the games? Sell the keys and you’ll probably make back more than what you’re buying them for.

But Humble Monthly is changing. Starting in a few months the service will reboot as Humble Choice, a cynical marketing decision to make it seem like you’re getting more while stripping away value and increasing prices. The basic package will now cost $14.99, a $2 increase per month, and give you three games to choose from out of that month’s selection. Yes, you are going to pay a roughly 15% increase for 70% less product. If you want something closely resembling the Humble Monthly bundle, you’ll have to pay $20 per month and even then you don’t get all of the games. Current subscribers will need to remain subscribed in order to keep their “classic” plan in effect.

Everyone wanted to know how long it would take IGN to flip the table and start gouging Humble Monthly and it looks like the answer is two years. The most entertaining part of this announcement is seeing Humble’s PR people try to spin this as even vicariously resembling something pro-consumer.

EA Stock Capsizes After Early Year Recovery

Electronic Arts closed on February 6, 2019 at the price of $80.21 USD following news that the publisher’s third quarter fiscal results did not perform to its expectations. The continued price drop threatens to wipe out the progress that EA had made in the first month of the year to begin recovery after its stock dropped to a low of $74.72 on December 24, 2018 following ten years of sustained growth that saw its stock peak at nearly $150 in July 2017 before steadily shedding much of that value over the following six months.

Since last December the stock price has been slowly inching its way back up, breaking $90 by January 10 and holding steadily for the past month. With the announcement that EA would miss its estimated revenue by approximately $140 million, at $1.61 billion for the quarter versus $1.75 billion, shares immediately dropped from $92.52 on February 5 to $79.26 on February 6.

EA CEO Andrew Wilson stated acknowledged that EA did not perform as he hoped, owing partially to the underperformance of Battlefield V.

“Q3 was a difficult quarter for Electronic Arts and we did not perform to our expectations. We are now applying the strengths of our company to sharpen our execution and focus on delivering great new games and long-term live services for our players. We’re very excited about Apex Legends, the upcoming launch of Anthem, and a deep line-up of new experiences that we’ll bring to our global communities next fiscal year.”

Activision Blizzard Terminates Its CFO, Netflix Poaches Him

As the year comes to a close, Activision Blizzard is making headlines with their announcement that it intends on terminating Chief Financial Officer Spencer Neumann for “cause unrelated to the company’s financial reporting or disclosure controls and procedures.” Mr. Neumann has not officially been terminated and has been offered the opportunity to demonstrate why cause does not exist to terminate his employment, however should he leave he will be replaced by acting CCO Dennis Durkin.

The news dropped in the form of a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission today:

“Mr. Neumann has been placed on a paid leave of absence from the Company pending an opportunity for him to demonstrate why cause does not exist to terminate his employment or why termination of his employment is not otherwise justified. In light of the above, effective January 1, 2019, Mr. Dennis Durkin, our Chief Corporate Officer, will assume the duties of the principal financial officer (Chief Financial Officer) of the Company. In the event Mr. Neumann ultimately ceases to be the Chief Financial Officer, then Mr. Durkin will become the Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Durkin, 48, joined the Company in March 2012 as Chief Financial Officer and served in that role until May 2017. He has served in the role of Chief Corporate Officer since May 2017 through the present.”

Mr. Neumann may have brighter prospects on the horizon outside of Activision Blizzard’s corporate shenanigans, as the news also broke that Netflix is looking to bring him on board to serve as their own Chief Financial Officer.

Activision Blizzard stocks started the year at $64.31 USD, peaked at $83.39 in October, and has since dropped to a low of $46.57 at the close of the market today. The decline marks a sharp turn from the steady increase in Activision’s stock over the past two decades.

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