EA to Release Fourth Quarter Fiscal Year 2012 Results on May 7, 2012

What is the context of that? Who made that statement? Was it an accountant? Was it a financial officer? Is this a US public company they are talking about? Not many game companies are listed on the NYSE, which are subject to Sarbanes-Oxley and MUCH MORE STRINGENT ACCOUNTING STANDARDS than some privately held software company, a point which you ignore.

I'm sure the report will read something like this:

"As of the end of April we have over 2 million active accounts."

Of course they will strategically use the word "active accounts" instead of subs so they can count all the players who had their accounts forced back open for a week even if they canceled.

And also coincided with the free month all active accounts have been given so that it is impossible for them to see any drop off or reduction in "active" accounts.

If they report actual sub numbers, they still get to count all the free month people, but I don't think they can count the 7 days of forced activation accounts. Then I predict probably about 1 million subs total.

Our guild alone has added over 50 people who have started over from dead servers this past month, yet our overall server population has remained relatively stagnant, which says to me that people are leaving pretty steadily even while the players do their own manual server merges.

It's what most MMORPGs do and have done.

There's nothing illegal or dodgy (legally) about including any of those accounts in your subs numbers, which is why they do it. Although it might not be what most people would always think of as active subs.

SoE was doing it well over 10 years ago now.

Like every thing the "truth" depends on your point of view.

Yes, purposely posting a false rumour on over 500 different message boards might, but saying you think SWTOR has XXXXXXX subs here isn't the same thing at all.


Although it seems I was spot on with the plea bargain.

Well considering the free month extends everyone's subscription, they will have every subscriber active that ever bought the game.

Most MMORPGs aren't operated by PUBLICLY LISTED COMPANIES. Why is that so hard to grasp? A privately held company can lie for all it cares. Who's going to sue?

A US public company can't. Its shareholders will sue, and the SEC will be giving your CFO a call.

And you were flat out wrong with you, "No, not at all."

I come up with evidence proving your, "No, not at all" comment completely incorrect, and then you backtrack and revise your argument to "well actually...as long as you don't do it to over 500 different message boards.....". Care to make anymore caveats? Or will you just admit you were wrong with you, "No, not at all"?