Reporter Mike Musgrove digs into the ESA's recent difficulties in today's Washington Post.

Musgrove brings an interesting perspective to the piece, given that he wrote one of the early profiles of embattled ESA CEO Michael Gallagher last September. In response to Musgrove's questions about losing Activision, Vivendi, LucasArts and id as member companies, Gallagher said:

There are hundreds of trade associations in Washington and virtually all feature member turnover and the ESA is no exception.

Full Disclosure Dept: The ECA is the parent company of GamePolitics…

Is the Entertainment Software Association DOOMed?

It might seem that way, as yet another member company, id Software, has left the organization which represents the interests of US video game publishers. id's departure follows those of Activision, Vivendi and LucasArts in recent weeks.

GamePolitics has confirmed through a representative that id, best known for its first-person shooter franchises DOOM and Quake, is no longer a member.

The ESA did not respond to our inquiries, but might be expected to issue a late Friday afternoon press release as it did when it acknowledged LucasArts' recent exit. We also note that id no longer appears on the member section of the ESA website.

GP: At some point the continuing departure of member companies calls into question the ESA's ability to survive. The organization has gone from 28 to 24 members over the last few weeks and there are rumors of additional potential exits.

UPDATE: The ESA has confirmed id's departure. GamePolitics has received this statement from Sr. VP Rich Taylor:

We can confirm that id Software has decided not to renew its membership in the ESA.   We admire their creativity and innovation.  We also respect their decision.

 

The ESA continues to lead the thriving video and computer game industry.  We are dedicated to protecting intellectual property, preserving First Amendment rights and fostering a beneficial environment for the entire entertainment software industry.