One of the largest additions in this year's Madden series was the inclusion of online franchise mode. For the first time, players could join together with 32 players to create their own little slice of NFL, with a live draft and the ability to experience the full offline franchise mode online. It works fairly well, with only a few minor issues here and there. In an attempt to expand the awesome feature even further, EA has released a free iPhone app that offers all of the management features of online franchise in the palm of your hand. Or in the palm of the hand of the guy sitting next to you, taking advantage of the computer players' kindness when it comes to trading away their star players for scrubs.

So far our experiments with the App have been mostly positive. It's slightly laggier than it should be, that's to be sure, but it's an issue that will likely be addressed in an update. Either way, it's free, so there's absolutely no reason not to download it if you're in an online franchise. Hell, even I did, and I have every intention of going 0-16 this season. Goooooooo Bucs!

The press release is below.

Madden NFL 10 Online Franchise Companion App Now Available
October 1, 2009 – It’s time to fight for online dominance in Madden NFL 10, and now you can always be connected to your Online Franchise, even from the road.

The Madden NFL 10 Online Franchise Companion App is now available via the iTunes Store. Check out the latest standings, league news, propose and accept player transactions, set your depth chart and more. It’s your Madden NFL 10 Online Franchise at your fingertips - 24/7, 365.

With over 200,000 Online Franchises already created, Madden NFL 10 has had the most successful online launch in EA SPORTS history with over 25 million online games played to date. Now is the time to kick off the football season as Madden NFL 10 is the highest rated version in the past 5 years, and Yahoo! Sports proclaims, “Madden NFL 10 represents the biggest single-year advancement in years!”

Compete in leagues of 32 teams, featuring real NFL scheduling, to find out who owns the virtual gridiron. Declared the Best Software Achievement of E3 2009 by G4TV’s X-Play, Madden NFL 10 Online Franchise features a robust feature set, including live drafts, league message boards, and more – all manageable from your console, remotely through a web browser, or via Online Franchise Companion App. Your Madden NFL 10 Online Franchise is always just a click away.

The Madden NFL 10 Online Franchise Companion App can be downloaded at Apple’s App Store at:
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=327499481&mt=8