GDC Online is scheduled to kick off on October 9th and three new names have just been added to the speaker list with SOE’s John Smedley, CCP and BioWare.

SOE boss John Smedley will be speaking about transitioning to the free-to-play model, which has become the dominate business model for the online gaming publisher. Smedley will discuss some of the lessons learned from SOE’s earlier transitions that will aid future developers that may look to adopt the model.

Dave Moore, BioWare's senior director of platform services, will be speaking about BioWare’s scalable platform for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Moore will share details about BioWare’s preparation for launch and technical details and design decisions leading up to launch.

Lastly, EVE Online developer CCP will be represented by Senior Researcher Petur Oskarsson, who will discuss the dos and dont’s of a metrics-driven community to avoid common mistakes and pitfalls while incorporating player feedback effectively to help keep communities alive and active.

GDC Online takes place from October 9-11 at the Austin Convention Center in Austin, Texas. Visit the GDC Online website to learn more.

Source: GDC Online debuts Smedley, Old Republic, MMO community talks