"Going forward now, with Most Wanted and what we'll do in the future [will have], shall we say, a strong Criterion involvement. I'm personally involved in how the cars drive, how the game will play out, how connected they are, and what the features are. Our stamp's going to be in everything you see in Need for Speed and Burnout going forward in the future. It's not going to be spread anymore across different companies. Different studios have had a crack at it - it's definitely a Criterion gig now." - Criterion vice president Alex Ward

I think that idea will work out well for quite a few years. I'm sure at some point another studio might want to take a crack at the franchise, but for now it's Criterion's job.