SOE & online card games

Apparently Sony Online Entertainment has noticed the profitability of card games, both in terms of higher monthly revenue ($67 per user per month on average) and lower development cost. Some of the Hollywood IP it already made into card games are:

Pirates of the Carribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (Disney)
Pirates of the Spanish Main
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Lord of the Rings (New Line Cinema, $75 monthly revenue per subscriber)
Stargate: SG1

Remember, SOE owns EverQuest and Untold Legends.

Apparently, only Wizards of the Coast’s Magic: the Gathering has been in this territory. But according to Scott Martins (director of development at SOE’s most recent acquisition Worlds Apart Productions, now SOE Denver): “The revenue per user is incredible, although it’s still relatively a niche business. We can build these games in five months with a team of nine people for a fraction of the cost of a PC game.”