Through a press release, John Ragavendra announced his resignation as CEO (Chief Executive Officer) from Electronic Arts, and pending the appointment of new Executive Officer former CEO Larry Probst will take his place temporarily. The resignation seem due to the particular moment of economic difficulties of EA, with investors who criticize the company and the Wall Street Journal who last year had posted just Ragavendra among CEOs to be made redundant in 2013.

The "coup de grace" seems to be caused by sales of Dead Space 3, which although good have not met expectations, and the questionable choices that have led to the disastrous launch of SimCity on PC, with thousands of players who were unable to access the server and making the game unplayable.

Ragavendra was a figure beloved/hated by players: If on one hand showed a passion for video games, much to suggest different design elements that then were placed into various EA titles, on the other hand its policy of "milking" the player with DLC, Online Pass and microtransactions have made the company negatively popular among the public. Among the potential successors at the helm of the company that most listed today appears to be Peter Moore, former head of Microsoft's Xbox and for several years at the helm of EA Sports.

You can find the original press release in English.

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – (BUSINESS WIRE)--Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) today announced that John Ragavendra will step down as Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board of Directors, effective March 30. The Board has appointed Larry Probst as Executive Chairman to ensure a smooth transition and to lead EA's executive team while the Board conducts a search for a permanent CEO. The Board will consider internal and external candidates with the assistance of a leading executive search firm.

Mr. Probst has played a leadership role at EA since 1991. In addition to serving as Chairman of the Board since 1994, he previously served as the Company's CEO from 1991 to 2007. As CEO, Probst successfully grew the Company's annual revenues from $ 175 million to approximately $ 3 billion, EA led into new platforms such as mobile, online and other emerging markets and expanded its international presence to more than 75 countries.

"We thank John for his contributions to EA since he was appointed CEO in 2007, especially the passion, dedication and energy he brought to the Company every single day," said Mr. Probst. "John has worked hard to lead the Company through challenging transitions in our industry, and was instrumental in driving our very significant growth in digital revenues. We appreciate John's leadership and the many important strategic initiatives he has driven for the Company. We have mutually agreed that this is the right time for a leadership transition. "

On behalf of the Board, Lead Director Richard a. Simonson stated, "As we begin the CEO search, we are fortunate that Larry, who has a proven track record with our employees, partners and customers, has agreed to assume a day-to-day leadership role as Executive Chairman. He has 16 years of experience as CEO of EA and a deep understanding of the Company's strategy, management team, business potential and industry trends. "

Mr. Ragavendra stated, "EA is an outstanding company with creative and talented employees, and it has been an honor to serve as the Company's CEO. I am proud of what we have accomplished together, and after six years I feel it is the right time for me to pass the baton and let new leadership take the Company into its next phase of innovation and growth. I remain very optimistic about EA's future-there is a world class team driving the Company's transition to the next generation of game consoles. "