Electronic Arts Pitches Sports-Game Promotion

"There's going to be people that buy the cheaper product," Jenson said. But he added that EA felt it has "done well despite having a $19 competitor."

Some analysts have worried, though, that EA may be underestimating the danger of Take-Two's challenge both in the short and long term. While the price cut on NBA Live and the sports game promotion bring down the prices of EA's games, those games are still priced significantly above the ESPN titles.

Meanwhile, the ESPN titles are of comparable quality to EA's games, analysts say, meaning that if Take-Two can get customers to try them, they may come back to buy them again next year, at EA's expense.

But Jenson played down the challenge.

"We continue to be the leader," he said, adding that the company expects to have 60% of the sports game market in North America this year.

"People come after you" when you have that kind of share, he said. "There's a littered field of sports competitors [who failed] in the marketplace," he added.

And he noted that companies trying to compete against EA on price are going to have a hard time developing quality, brand-name games at a profit. Take-Two admitted as much earlier this month when it reported that its ESPN line had boosted its third-quarter revenue far beyond its guidance but had little effect on its bottom line.

"There's no free lunch here," Jenson said.

EA's shares closed regular trading off 82 cents, or 1.7%, to $46.30 on Thursday. Meanwhile, at the bell, Take-Two's stock was off 31 cents, or 0.9%, to $34.11.

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