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Andrew Wilson (businessman)

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Andrew Wilson
Born (1974-09-07) 7 September 1974 (age 50)
Geelong, Victoria, Australia[1]
NationalityAustralian
Alma materQueensland University of Technology[2]
Occupation(s)Chairman and CEO of Electronic Arts
Years active2000–present
PredecessorJohn Riccitiello

Andrew Wilson (born 7 September 1974)[citation needed] is an Australian businessman who has been the CEO of Electronic Arts (EA) since September 2013. He has also been chairman of the company since 2021.

Early life and education

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Wilson grew up in a working-class family in Victoria and Queensland, Australia.[2] In his youth he played rugby and basketball at school, coached Taekwondo, and played golf, surfed, swam, and ran.[2]

He attended Queensland University of Technology, but dropped out before obtaining his law degree.[2]

Career

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Early career

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In the dot-com boom of the late 1990s, Wilson, living in Sydney, built Australian websites for international corporations.[2] He subsequently also helped raise venture capital and launch IPOs for dot-com start-ups.[2]

Electronic Arts

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After the dot-com bubble burst in late 1999, in May 2000 Wilson joined Electronic Arts' small video-game development studio on Australia's Gold Coast, which created V8 supercar, rugby, cricket, and surfing video games but needed someone with real experience in how the sports were actually played.[2] That studio closed in 2002 due to lack of scale.[2] Wilson then worked in the company's Asian and European markets for several years before moving to EA Sports and then becoming an executive producer on the FIFA franchise.[3] In August 2011 he was appointed executive vice president of EA Sports, and he also took on duties as executive vice president of the company's Origin platform in April 2013.[4][5]

Six months after the resignation of John Riccitiello, Wilson was chosen to be the new CEO of the company on September 17, 2013.[6]

In his first year as CEO, Wilson initiated a "player-first" corporate strategy, and offered more free-to-play games and in-app purchase options.[7] In a move towards a transformation from physical software to digital, he also greatly increased EA's digital offerings, and launched EA Access, a subscription-based digital service for Xbox One players that allows unlimited play across a selection of EA titles.[7][8] Electronic Arts had a large revenue increase and its stock price doubled in 2014.[7][9]

In 2021, Wilson became chairman of the board of EA, following the retirement of Larry Probst.[10]

In 2023, he restructured the company into two organizations – EA Sports and EA Entertainment (formerly EA Games).[11][12]

Personal life

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Wilson is married, and has one daughter and one son.[13] He holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.[14][15]

Wilson and his family live in Atherton, California.[16] In 2022, along with several other Silicon Valley executives, he opposed a proposal to allow more than one home on a single acre in Atherton, which is one of Silicon Valley’s most exclusive and wealthiest towns.[16]

Awards and accolades

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  • 2010 — Winner, BAFTA, Games/Sports — FIFA 2010[17]
  • 2010 — Winner, BAFTA, Games/Use of Online — FIFA 2010[18]
  • 2014 — #5 on BBC.com's list of best CEOs of 2014[7]
  • 2014 — #6 on Forbes' list of America's Most Powerful CEOs 40 and Under[19]
  • Winner — Motley Fool's The Best Tech CEOs of 2014[8]
  • 2015 — #3 on Fortune magazine's Business Person of the Year list[9]
  • 2015 — #3 on Forbes' list of America's Most Powerful CEOs 40 and Under[20]
  • 2015 — #58 on Adweek's Power List: The 100 Most Influential Leaders in Marketing and Tech[21]
  • 2017 — Variety 500[22]
  • 2019 — Forbes Innovative Leaders[23]
  • 2022 — Variety 500[22]
  • 2023 — Variety 500[22]

References

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  1. ^ Robischon, Noah (2014). "Interview with Andrew Wilson, CEO of EA". SXSW. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Kehoe, John (9 January 2016). "Electronic Arts boss Andrew Wilson is one of Australia's top global CEOs". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  3. ^ Fleming, Ryan (17 September 2013). "Meet Andrew Wilson, the 39-year-old who just became EA's CEO". Digital Trends. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  4. ^ "Andrew Wilson | LinkedIn". Archived from the original on 18 September 2013.
  5. ^ Sinclair, Brendan. "EA confirms more layoffs". GamesIndustry International. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  6. ^ Statt, Nick. "EA names EA Sports chief Andrew Wilson as CEO". CNET News. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  7. ^ a b c d Finkelstein, Sydney (15 January 2015). "Capital - The best CEOs of 2014". BBC. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  8. ^ a b "The Best Tech CEOs of 2014 - The Motley Fool". Fool.com. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  9. ^ a b "Businessperson of the Year". Fortune.com. 10 November 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  10. ^ Makuch, Eddie (26 May 2021). "One Of EA's Most Influential And Important Veterans Is Stepping Down". GameSpot. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  11. ^ Huston, Caitlin (20 June 2023). "Electronic Arts Shake-Up: New CFO and Studio Reorganization". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  12. ^ Leston, Ryan (21 June 2023). "EA Games splits from EA Sports as part of rebrand". NME. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  13. ^ "40u40: Andrew Wilson". Bizjournals.com. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  14. ^ "What Jiu-Jitsu taught EA CEO Andrew Wilson running a company". Fastcompany.com. 25 September 2024. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  15. ^ "Meet the Man Who Led EA's FIFA to the Top of the Video Game World". Fortune. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  16. ^ a b Griffith, Erin (12 August 2022). "The Summer of NIMBY in Silicon Valley's Poshest Town". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  17. ^ "2010 Games Sports | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  18. ^ "BAFTA Awards Search | BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  19. ^ "No. 6 Andrew Wilson - pg.6". Forbes.com. Archived from the original on 17 March 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  20. ^ "America's Most Powerful CEOs 40 and Under". Archived from the original on 29 March 2015.
  21. ^ Gianatasio, David. "Adweek's Power List: The 100 Most Influential Leaders in Marketing, Media and Tech". Adweek.com. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  22. ^ a b c "Andrew Wilson". Variety. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  23. ^ "Andrew Wilson". Forbes. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
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