Leading publisher Electronic Arts has announced today that the company will be organizing itself into four distinct business units/labels: EA Sports, EA Games, EA Casual Entertainment and The Sims. EA said that each label "will operate with dedicated studio and publishing teams focused on consumer-driven priorities."

The company also noted that "the new structure is designed to streamline decision-making, improve global focus, and speed new ideas to the market."

You may recall that earlier this month EA announced its new casual division, headed by former Activision executive Kathy Vrabeck.

More information on each of the four labels was presented by EA as follows:

  • The Sims – Led by Label President Nancy Smith. This team created the model on which the new organization is built. Upcoming releases include: MySims for the Wii and Nintendo DS, SimCity Societies, and The Sims Castaway Stories and many more.
  • EA Games – Led by Label President Frank Gibeau. This label includes Need for Speed, Medal of Honor, SPORE, Battlefield, Burnout, Command & Conquer, The Simpsons and more. EA Games will also be home to the EA Partners publishing business.
  • EA Casual Entertainment – Led by Label President Kathy Vrabeck. This team will focus on lighter, more accessible games for families and new consumers. The portfolio will include EA franchises and games such as Harry Potter, Boogie and others. This group will also be home to EA Mobile and EA's casual suite of online games, Pogo.com.
  • EA SPORTS – Without question, the strongest brand in interactive entertainment. This team is responsible for many of the company's flagship franchises including Madden NFL, NBA Live, FIFA Soccer, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR, NHL Hockey and NASCAR. EA Executive Vice President Joel Linzner will oversee this group until a president of EA Sports is announced.

    "This transition will be implemented over the course of the coming months," said EA Chief Executive Officer John Riccitiello. "EA is privileged to have a deep bench of proven talent and our new structure encourages people to bring great ideas into the market more quickly. There will be more games and services for core consumers and new gamers and better focus on operational efficiency."

    EA also announced two new groups to support the four labels. A Central Development Services group will be led by Executive Vice President John Schappert; this group will include leadership on technology, operations, EA's online platform, and the office of the Chief Creative Officer. The second group, EA Global Publishing, will be responsible for strategic planning, field marketing, sales and distribution in Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America. In addition, the new structure will maintain worldwide support teams for Finance, IT, Legal and Human Resources.