Updated at 2:40 p.m. — corrected inaccurate comparison to platforms.
The mobile-based future is here, and publisher Electronic Arts is reaping the rewards. EA reported today that it made more money through Apple’s App Store than any other retail distributor. That includes its own Origin digital-download service.
“Our quarter was notable was for its strong digital sales,” EA chief operating officer Peter Moore said in a conference call with investors. “To that end, Apple was EA’s biggest retail partner as measured by sales. That is a first.”
EA pointed out a few well-performing mobile games that include The Simpsons: Tapped Out, Real Racing 3, and The Sims Freeplay.
The Simpsons: Tapped Out had its biggest quarter ever. It launched in August, but it made more money in the three-month period ending June 30 than in any other quarter. Real Racing 3 also continues to generate revenue for the publisher. The racing game reached 45 million downloads and averages around 2 million daily active users. In Q1, The Sims Freeplay was among the highest-grossing games on iPad, according to Moore.
Electronic Arts made a total of $90 million on smartphones and tablets, but it didn’t define how much of that came from iOS and how much came from Android.
This is a big moment for EA. The publisher is obviously finding success on mobile. It was the top publisher on Apple’s App Store in terms of downloads, and it’s likely going to commit even more resources to mobile especially as smartphones begin finding a market in emerging markets around the world.