EA Reiterates Support For Tiger Woods, Will Launch Online Game

EA Will Release An Online, Subscription- Based Version Of Woods Game Later This Year

Electronic Arts last night announced it will maintain its relationship with Tiger Woods following his personal scandals, continuing an alignment that began in '97. EA's support behind Woods will pave the way for the company later this year to release fully an online, subscription-based version of "Tiger Woods PGA Golf," which has been in closed beta development for the past eight months, and will shift to open beta later this month. EA Sports President Peter Moore, writing on his personal blog "It's In The Game," said, "By his own admission, he's made some mistakes off the course. But regardless of what's happening in his personal life, and regardless of his decision to take a personal leave from the sport, Tiger Woods is still one of the greatest athletes in history." Moore acknowledged the move will "no doubt create some attention and further speculation about Tiger Woods, and about his relationship with sponsors." But he added, "Our relationship with Tiger has always been rooted in golf. We didn't form a relationship with him so that he could act as an arm's length endorser. Far from it." Moore said he is "proud" of the forthcoming browser-based version of "Tiger Woods PGA Tour," but EA has not confirmed whether it will continue with another packaged goods version of the annual Woods game, typically one of EA Sports' most prominent and popular releases (Eric Fisher, SportsBusiness Journal). In L.A., Alex Pham noted EA has "sunk months of work on the online title, perhaps too much to simply cut bait." Moore noted that the game had been tested with "more than 75,000 players for the last eight months" (LATIMES.com, 1/4).

A LOOK AT THE SCORECARD: USA TODAY's Michael McCarthy notes since Woods' car accident on November 27, "six sponsors have stood by him while five have either dumped him, dialed back his image in marketing efforts or discontinued his products." Nike, EA Sports, Upper Deck, NetJets, TLC Vision and the Tiger Woods Dubai resort all have "publicly supported" the golfer. Conversely, AT&T and Accenture have severed ties with Woods, while Tag Heuer and Gillette have said that "they're bowing to his request for privacy by putting his image on ice in their ad campaigns." Gatorade also is dropping its Tiger-themed line of drinks, though the company "made the call before" Woods' accident (USA TODAY, 1/5).

Accenture One Of Five Companies To Sever Or Reduce Ties With Woods Since Accident

UP OR DOWN? ESPN.com's Jason Sobel wrote "severing or decreasing ties with Tiger Woods isn't just a knee-jerk reaction." It is the "right move -- and it has little to do with morals and ethics." While execs for AT&T, Accenture, Tag Heuer and Gillette "may personally disapprove of Woods' admitted infidelities, each has dropped its sponsorship of the golfer or pulled back its promotional campaigns solely because of monetary value." Sobel: "Are any of these companies ever going to gain international attention simply by having a logo on Woods' golf bag or by using his likeness in television advertising? Not like this" (ESPN.com, 1/4). But BLOOMBERG NEWS' Matthew Lynn writes the sponsors downsizing ties with Woods have "misunderstood why they wanted celebrity endorsements in the first place." Companies need "authenticity, not bland corporate perfection," so if they "aren't willing to accept that their 'ambassadors' are real people, with all the flaws and fallibilities that come with that package, there is no point in having them on the payroll." When corporations "attempt to set themselves up as moral arbiters, they just end up making themselves look out of touch." Lynn: "You have to be amused by the priggishness and hypocrisy of the corporate honchos who have decided that Woods is about as socially acceptable as a Sunday afternoon golfer hacking divots into the fairways at St. Andrews" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 1/5).