Riccitiello defends online play "Pass"

Pay $10 to play a secondhand or rented EA game online? "Great idea," says JR.

The EA boss defended the scheme in the company's full-year call yesterday. The "Pass" will mean that those playing non-new copies of EA Sports games will need to pay $10 to access online features.

"We think it's a great idea, we think it's going to build our business, and we think it's a positive consumer experience," said Riccitiello. "Invariably, the consumer is getting a boat load more content to experience than they otherwise would.

"We used to literally pull our teams off of a game within four to six weeks pre-ship and they'd go work on something else because the game was done," he added. "Our teams are being held in place up through and beyond ship to continue to create content to entertain the consumer with the franchise they like best."

The Pass joins Mass Effect 2's Cerberus Network and Battlefield: Bad Company 2's VIP codes as part of EA's ongoing online incentive strategy.

Thanks, IGN.