ESA boss shrugs off departures, points to "fluctuation"

Speaking to Kotaku, ESA head Mike Gallagher has palmed off talk of an "exodus" from the organisation saying it's normal for membership to fluctuate, and pointing out that while some companies have left his fold, other have joined in the past year.

His comment come after the high profile departures of Activision, Vivendi, id Software and LucasArts from ESA this year.

"The membership of any association fluctuates over time," he said. "For example, though it didn’t receive much attention by the gamer press, in the past nine months we added four new members—Epic Games, MTV Games, NCSoft, and Codemasters.

"What’s important to remember is not the changes in membership rolls, but the value the ESA provides to the industry – a proven track record of defending First Amendment rights, educating elected officials and the uninitiated about computer and video games, and creating an environment beneficial to the entire industry.

"I would expect that the ESA will continue to make adjustments to ensure that we are delivering the best value and highest benefit to our members in the years to come."

Click through to read Mike saying "no comment" in a hundred different ways over lots of words.