EA executive dismisses "totally irrelevant" NPD reports

In the same interview in which he promised EA will go "100% digital", Labels boss Frank Gibeau said the publisher doesn't give a fig for "irrelevant" NPD data.

Gibeau told GamesIndustry that the NPD's reports measure "a sliver of what's actually happening in gaming".

"It's an irrelevant measure on the industry. It's totally irrelevant. We don't even really look at it internally anymore," he said.

"We're more focused on our services and how we're connected with consumers. The number of Nucleus accounts we're growing, the amount of engagement time that we have, the amount of services that we're running - those are more important metrics for us than unit sales according to NPD and North America."

The NPD has been criticised for failing to account for non-traditional gaming spend, but has taken steps to correct this oversight. The firm released a report yesterday showing that rentals, digital and used sales already outweigh new packaged purchases in total retail spend, on top of recent research showing one-third of gamers prefer digital purchases.