In a filing with the SEC, Electronic Arts (EA +0.36%) announced this week that 39-year-old Andrew Wilson had been appointed CEO of the video game company. He also has been named a director. Wilson has been with Electronic Arts in various capacities since 2000, and has served as the executive vice president of EA Sports since 2011.
Wilson replaces interim CEO Larry Probst, who has held the post since March of this year after John Riccitiello resigned citing "the shortcomings in our financial results this year." Riccitiello had served as CEO with Electronic Arts since 2007, and was also the COO from 1997-2004. Probst was the CEO from 1991-2007 and has been chairman of the board since 1994.
In a statement posted on the company's website, Andrew Wilson said that he envisions EA as "the World's Greatest Games Company," and highlighted three focus areas for the company:
- "Continued transformation for our digital future."
- "Delivering amazing games and services across platforms."
- "Instilling a culture of execution that will drive profitable growth."
In addition, Probst said, "I am convinced that Andrew was an inspired choice by our Board, and one I expect the team at EA will enthusiastically support."
Wilson will receive an annual base annual salary of $800,000 with a target bonus of $1.2 million, or 150% of his salary. The bonus is largely contingent on the performance of EA stock relative to the overall performance of the NASDAQ-100. In addition Wilson received an option to purchase up to 1 million shares of the company beginning in November 2014.
