Microsoft Wins the Advantage with Ties to EA

Microsoft has just inked a deal with Electronic Arts for the rights to advertise in five of the video-game publisher’s top titles. Google was also in the running for the prestigious ad spots, but in the end, Microsoft won the contract (see article from The Seattle Times). A Knowledge Map powered by IntellectSpace reveals the connections Microsoft has to EA that may have given it the advantage.

One person that Microsoft may have turned to for help in winning EA’s favor is Linda J. Srere. Srere is not only a current director at EA, but she is also a board member at aQuantive Inc, which Microsoft acquired in May 2007. This direct connection alone makes a strong case for why EA would choose Microsoft over Google in this deal.

Gregory B. Maffei is another director at EA who probably gave Microsoft his vote - Microsoft employed Maffei for seven years, where he last served as Senior Vice President and CFO until 2000. As Maffei can offer a wealth of insider information about this past experience, EA probably felt a greater degree of confidence in going with Microsoft instead of Google.

And Meffei and Srere aren’t the only directors with ties to Microsoft. Vivek Paul, (another EA board member), probably knows Ashok Ganguly through Wipro Ltd. Even though Ganguly is only a director at Microsoft India, simply knowing someone affiliated with Microsoft may have been enough for Srere to vote in favor of the company as opposed to Google.

With all of the connections that EA has to Microsoft, it comes as no surprise who won the lucrative digital advertising contract.

Click here for an interactive version of this IntellectSpace Knowledge Map (Internet Explorer browsers only): http://nv.intellectspace.com/ispace/GuestMonitor.aspx?id=827e2c75-3b3e-4a23-8fd1-1eacc4fd55ab