EA announces the 'Online Pass'

10.05.2010
EA has tested the waters of in-box downloadable content codes with its new releases, with its 'Project Ten Dollar' initiative offering the likes of unlockable nudity in The Saboteur and the Cerberus Network in Mass Effect 2 for free with new purchases and for $10 to customers without the DLC code. In what may be the biggest (and riskiest) application of that philosophy yet, EA Sports has announced that all new copies of its simulation sports games on the PS3 and Xbox 360 will come with the "Online Pass," an in-box code that grants full online gameplay and bonus content to customers who choose to redeem the code. Customers who own copies of the game with a redeemed Online Pass will have to pay $10 for a digital version. 7-day trial versions of the Online Pass will also be available for customers unsure about whether they want to experience their EA Sports games online.

EA Sports has released a lot of information regarding the Online Pass, in the forms of a a , and . While all three shed quite a bit of light on EA Sport's latest move, a quote from Wilson in his interview seems to sum the crux of the Online Pass' creation quite succinctly, as he stated "We want to reserve EA SPORTS online services for people who pay EA to access them."

We've sent queries to EA Sports, and will update this article if we hear back.

SOURCE: [EA Sports Blog]