Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2012? You betcha!

Electronics Arts has has signed a long term contract with Tiger Woods for rights to continue to produce the Tiger Woods golf franchise for another six years, according to a third quarter earnings report. In the EA document, a short but revealing bullet point stated that, “– The Company’s exclusive license with Tiger Woods was extended for six years.” The Tiger golf games, by Electronic Arts, have continued to be the most popular of this video game genre. It is also one of the longest lasting franchises produced by EA. The Tiger Woods games were first introduced to the public in 1998, and now, with the new extension contract, we™ll be seeing Tiger well into the 2012 golf season. Woods has always been a staunch supporter of EA. In statements given in a 2001 interview, as reported by dragonlady.com, he stated his loyalty to the game firm by saying, “I am thrilled to continue my relationship and involvement with EA SPORTS, the definitive sports brand in the video game industry. It is always important that I align myself with the best brands in each product category. Just as I’m always pushing myself to improve my golf game, Electronic Arts continues to push the envelope in the video game space and produce the best titles. For me, I grew up playing video games and there’s nothing better than partnering with EA SPORTS.” Tiger™s remarks about EA were made in 2001, but much has changed since then. The company has fallen on some recent bad times, and is trying to regroup and rethink its strategy in the video game business. Tiger™s opinion that, EA continues to push the envelope in the video game space and produce the best titles is doubted by many now, but Electronic Arts is trying to return to those words uttered by Tiger. Just as in golf, there are good days and bad days. EA is hoping that the bad days will soon be over.