Federal documents also show that the EA Board of Directors may award Probst a one-time discretionary bonus at the end of his term, with the amount to be determined by the Board.

In addition to his new role at EA of executive chairman, Probst is a member of the Board. He abstained from the Compensation Committee's salary decision and will not receive any further cash retainer fees for his position on the Board while he is also executive chairman.

Probst has been in a leadership position at EA since 1991 and was CEO from 1991 to 2007. He is also the current executive chairman of the United States Olympic Committee and serves on the International Olympic Committee's International Relations Commission. Past positions include national sales manager at Activision and national accounts manager at Clorox.

Six-year EA CEO Riccitiello resigned from the company on March 18, citing a failure to meet financial milestones as his reason to move on. His separation agreement with EA includes 24 months of continued salary and other options worth an .

Looking ahead, the EA Board will consider internal and external candidates to replace Riccitiello with the help of a "leading executive search firm."

According to , leading internal candidates for the position include current chief operating officer Peter Moore and EA Labels president Frank Gibeau. EA has set no timetable for when it plans to name a new top executive.

From: www.gamespot.com

"EA's controversial CEO John Riccitiello will step down as of March 30 as part of a mutual decision with the board of directors. We believe timing makes sense for a CEO transition at the end of the fiscal year, and ahead of next generation console launches and a strong [second half of 2013] title lineup (Battlefield and EA Sports)," Baird said.

Despite EA's financial challenges, which Riccitiello said were , Sebastian said EA has positioned itself to benefit from the upcoming console transition.

"We believe EA is well positioned for the console refresh cycle, and the company has made progress in building a digital platform and more recently controlling expenses," Sebastian said. "However, we note that inconsistent financial performance, some high profile title flops (e.g., Star Wars: The Old Republic) and employee turnover were issues that impacted the CEO's credibility."

Lastly, Sebastian suggested that current chief operating officer Peter Moore and EA Labels president Frank Gibeau are leading internal candidates to take over as CEO. The EA Board of Directors will also consider external candidates with the the help of a "leading executive search firm." In the meantime, longtime EA executive Larry Probst will lead EA.

From: www.gamespot.com

"EA's controversial CEO John Riccitiello will step down as of March 30 as part of a mutual decision with the board of directors. We believe timing makes sense for a CEO transition at the end of the fiscal year, and ahead of next generation console launches and a strong [second half of 2013] title lineup (Battlefield and EA Sports)," Baird said.

Despite EA's financial challenges, which Riccitiello said were , Sebastian said EA has positioned itself to benefit from the upcoming console transition.

"We believe EA is well positioned for the console refresh cycle, and the company has made progress in building a digital platform and more recently controlling expenses," Sebastian said. "However, we note that inconsistent financial performance, some high profile title flops (e.g., Star Wars: The Old Republic) and employee turnover were issues that impacted the CEO's credibility."

Lastly, Sebastian suggested that current chief operating officer Peter Moore and EA Labels president Frank Gibeau are leading internal candidates to take over as CEO. The EA Board of Directors will also consider external candidates with the the help of a "leading executive search firm." In the meantime, longtime EA executive Larry Probst will lead EA.

From: www.gamespot.com