EA finally getting sued

[Bronco Yoda]

EA getting sued. Hahahaha..... I hope it costs them millions.

Yes, by hook or by crook, they've accumulated an empire of great titles... their business practices suck and they've been eating up the gaming industry for years now. Now that they've essentially won the Interactive Entertainment publishing consolidation wars... theres no one left to eat but their own now.

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5450316.html

[NaptownChief]

Why you against them? Does it disappoint you that an American company is very successful in video game programming instead some Asian company for a change?

Hell, EA has revolutionized sports video game world and given millions of kids and adults a ton of entertainment. I'm extremely appreciative of their success. In all seriousness, is there something about them I should know or you just by chance one of those people that despise the success of others?

[Bronco_Beerslug]

Originally Posted by Bronco Yoda

EA getting sued. Hahahaha..... I hope it costs them millions.

Yes, by hook or by crook, they've accumulated an empire of great titles... their business practices suck and they've been eating up the gaming industry for years now. Now that they've essentially won the Interactive Entertainment publishing consolidation wars... theres no one left to eat but their own now.

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5450316.html

If they are treating their employees like this I hope they have to pay up big time. Amazing what these large companies think they can do to people!

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"The current mandatory hours are 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.--seven days a week--with the occasional Saturday evening off for good behavior (at 6:30 p.m.)," read the post, whose author claimed to be the "significant other" of an EA employee.

An EA spokeswoman on Thursday said the company did not normally comment on rumor.

Hundreds of comments followed the initial blog posting, with a number of responders saying EA isn't alone in the way it allegedly treats developers. "White-collar slavery is alive and well in the games industry," one anonymous responder wrote.

[Ratboy]

Ask them how much they are making a year. i wouldnt complain.

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by RTribbey

Ask them how much they are making a year. i wouldnt complain.

Or the company stock options they received that are up 100% in the last 24 months...

[Mile High Shack]

well.....the money might be good, but darn...do you want to sell your soul for money? I'm sure these people have families and would like to see them too.

[Spider]

I dont hate EA sports , but I hope they lose , just on this principle .......... You hire a man to do a job you pay that man ........ If he works overtime , Pay him O.T. ......... you can do alot of things to be an ass , but dont **** with a mans pay check , in essence , you are now Screwing with his family , going right to his heartland and starting trouble .......

[Hotrod]

I wonder if those employees would rather EA shipped their jobs over seas.

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by §Pide®

I dont hate EA sports , but I hope they lose , just on this principle .......... You hire a man to do a job you pay that man ........ If he works overtime , Pay him O.T. ......... you can do alot of things to be an ass , but dont **** with a mans pay check , in essence , you are now Screwing with his family , going right to his heartland and starting trouble .......

I completely agree....If they are truly screwing their employees then I hope that get what's coming to them. But I really have no idea if this is legit or just a garbage lawsuit.

I just don't understand Yoda's apparent enjoyment to see an American company get kicked in the wallet because they have been successful. There are so many people, I don't know if Yoda is one of them, that have this distorted view that "big business" is this mean, nasty, evil person or persons that needs to be strangled...."Big Business" is made up of nothing more than thousands of "little people" who bond together to make a product or service and have jobs and benefits for their efforts. When "big business" gets tax breaks or anything beneficial to the bottom line it means a bunch of "little people" get better pay raises, bonuses, benefits and more jobs. Again, I can't speak for Yoda as I am not certain of his intentions or tone but many liberals have been brain washed to believe that you should stick it to "big business" whenever possible and in reality all you are doing is sticking it to the "little people" they claim to want to help.

[Bronco_Beerslug]

Originally Posted by hotrod

I wonder if those employees would rather EA shipped their jobs over seas.

What's wrong with paying the money to them that they were promised and is demanded by law? Unless, of course, if you agree that third world working conditions ought to become what we do here in this country.

[Hotrod]

Originally Posted by Bronco_Beerslug

What's wrong with paying the money to them that they were promised and is demanded by law? Unless, of course, if you agree that third world working conditions ought to become what we do here in this country.

No the point is right or wrong EA and others like them are going to make their $. If its with higher wages here or lowwer somewhere else. My statement was just to make a point that there are serious problem and to be honest I dont know what the answer is. Its a shame that morals cant/wont be the answer.

[No1BroncoFan]

Originally Posted by NaptownChief

I completely agree....If they are truly screwing their employees then I hope that get what's coming to them. But I really have no idea if this is legit or just a garbage lawsuit.

I know a guy who used to work for EA Games. His description of what was going on there makes this one look like EA is treating their people well. Granted, he's probably got some bitterness issues, but he's a pretty level-headed guy.

Ben

[Bronco_Beerslug]

Originally Posted by hotrod

No the point is right or wrong EA and others like them are going to make their $. If its with higher wages here or lowwer somewhere else. My statement was just to make a point that there are serious problem and to be honest I dont know what the answer is. Its a shame that morals cant/wont be the answer.

Higher wages isn't an issue here if I read this right but EA working employees many hours of OT and not paying the OT. That's against the law.

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by No1BroncoFan

I know a guy who used to work for EA Games. His description of what was going on there makes this one look like EA is treating their people well. Granted, he's probably got some bitterness issues, but he's a pretty level-headed guy.

Ben

Certainly doesn't sound like a good place to work that is for certain....While I don't agree with the practice if it is indeed true but it sounds like it is a industry wide issue based on the article and pretty much the norm. If that is the case then it might be fair to say these folks know what they are getting into before they take the position in most cases...Much like a new law school grad knows they are going to be worked like a pack mule at 60-80 hours a week for the first couple years with a firm...

If it is similar to that then I would say it is more of a bad career choice than anything...But I certainly don't know enough about either side to draw conclusions.

[Hotrod]

Originally Posted by Bronco_Beerslug

Higher wages isn't an issue here if I read this right but EA working employees many hours of OT and not paying the OT. That's against the law.

I agree with you OT should be paid. Im just raising the issue of how long before EA says screw this were going over seas. Who can blame them from a $ stand point

[football idiot]

what these code-slaves don't tell their wives is that when they work til 10pm 7 days a week, they're really doing important stuff like 'play-testing' the 'beta-versions' of the latest games.... you got to make sure the shadow of the football is just right when Dante throws that 17th TD pass to Randy Moss.....

no, these guys put in 2 or 3 years, and they've got no problems finding some boring real-world job coding 30-hours a week and having a family life. no pity here. anybody feel sorry for NFL head coaches that work 100 hours a week? these are the best of the best, earning serious paychecks in a billion-dollar-business by getting better game engines, better graphics, and better marketing than the other guy. they build, and play-test, video games for a living.... poor guys...

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by football idiot

what these code-slaves don't tell their wives is that when they work til 10pm 7 days a week, they're really doing important stuff like 'play-testing' the 'beta-versions' of the latest games.... you got to make sure the shadow of the football is just right when Dante throws that 17th TD pass to Randy Moss.....

no, these guys put in 2 or 3 years, and they've got no problems finding some boring real-world job coding 30-hours a week and having a family life. no pity here. anybody feel sorry for NFL head coaches that work 100 hours a week? these are the best of the best, earning serious paychecks in a billion-dollar-business by getting better game engines, better graphics, and better marketing than the other guy. they build, and play-test, video games for a living.... poor guys...

I tend to lean this direction also...while they may be getting used a bit I would imagine they understand the landscape and expectations coming in...CPA's work ridiculous schedules in Nov, Dec and March thru April 15th. They know that going into the field and don't stand around suing because of it. Again, there could be a lot more abuses going on that I have zero clue about but if I had to guess this is nothing more than some slimly attorneys going after a standard practice and by no coincidence targeting one of the companies with the deepest pockets so they bilk the company for millions while keeping the biggest chunk for themselves.

[Ratboy]

Originally Posted by §Pide®

I dont hate EA sports , but I hope they lose , just on this principle .......... You hire a man to do a job you pay that man ........ If he works overtime , Pay him O.T. ......... you can do alot of things to be an ass , but dont **** with a mans pay check , in essence , you are now Screwing with his family , going right to his heartland and starting trouble .......

I agree on that, You have to pay him for the hours they do.

but i'd love to be smart enough to make video games. jeeeshh i'd be pissed to lose a job like that.

[Samiwindr]

EA is known in the valley for not being a good to their employees. The demand start-up hours (ie in excess of 60 per week) and they don't pay well in comparison to most companies out here. They are still able to get talent of course because it's an honor in the gaming world to work for EA. Consider that QA guys only make a couple dollars more per hour than the average fast food worker and the typical developer makes about the same as a junior developer at any other company. EA is effectively a farm for larger development houses. Guys go there to cut there teeth and play games, but once it's time for real money they bolt to Sony or B2B software house.

BTW, the knock I have against big-business is that they start squeezing the employees once the industry matures. It's great to be working for a large company when Market Cap is still an unknown and profit margins are big. The problem is that once the they can no longer maximize profits, they start minimizing costs to keep Wall Street happy. The biggest line items in SG&A are human capital and benefits, so those are the first things to get slashed. The only saving grace in terms of equity for most employees is stock options. Now the few companies that offer attractive option packages are getting kicked by Sarbanes-Oxley to begin expensing them - effectively doing away with the programs. As an investor, I'm happy about this getting finally getting reported on the 10K. As an American, it saddens me that individuals will no longer be offered an equity stake in the company they work so hard to promote.

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by Samiwindr

BTW, the knock I have against big-business is that they start squeezing the employees once the industry matures. It's great to be working for a large company when Market Cap is still an unknown and profit margins are big. The problem is that once the they can no longer maximize profits, they start minimizing costs to keep Wall Street happy. The biggest line items in SG&A are human capital and benefits, so those are the first things to get slashed. The only saving grace in terms of equity for most employees is stock options. Now the few companies that offer attractive option packages are getting kicked by Sarbanes-Oxley to begin expensing them - effectively doing away with the programs. As an investor, I'm happy about this getting finally getting reported on the 10K. As an American, it saddens me that individuals will no longer be offered an equity stake in the company they work so hard to promote.

Certainly agree with this...Companies have to manage to a bottom line number that will keep Wall Street satisfied so when "Big Business" gets squeezed by tax laws, regulation and any other obstacle thrown at them they have to squeeze employee costs and benefits to adjust. That is what most out of touch liberals don't understand when they are busy wanting to go after "big business" they are pretty much just sticking it to the little guy and his family.

The expensing of options won't get rid of option plans, it will just get rid of broad based plans that granted options to mid and low level employees. Top level employees will keep getting theirs, that much I can assure you. Another perfect example of government stepping in to "help and protect" the little guy when in reality they accomplish little other than hurting the little guy they desire to protect.

[missingnumber7]

So does this mean Madden 06 will be like $99.99?

[Hotrod]

Originally Posted by missingnumber7

So does this mean Madden 06 will be like $99.99?

thats the real issue here

[NaptownChief]

Originally Posted by missingnumber7

So does this mean Madden 06 will be like $99.99?

Or is it going to have game play like Mike Ditka Football on Sega Genesis cause the developers are going home early?

[Rock Chalk]

Union local nutjob of course is outraged even though he has neither the intellect to do the job or the compunction to try.

Programmers are a different breed and every one that I know stays up 18 hours a day looking at code whether they are working or not.

They can also choose to look for another job. Clearly they are marketable and talented because they are in the industry but they stay there.

No one's fault but their own and anyone b****ing about this is just another union dog.

[No1BroncoFan]

Originally Posted by NaptownChief

Certainly agree with this...Companies have to manage to a bottom line number that will keep Wall Street satisfied so when "Big Business" gets squeezed by tax laws, regulation and any other obstacle thrown at them they have to squeeze employee costs and benefits to adjust. That is what most out of touch liberals don't understand when they are busy wanting to go after "big business" they are pretty much just sticking it to the little guy and his family.

Trust me, the extreme left knows exactly what they're doing when they go after big business.

Ben