MacWorld's still a month away, and we've already got rumors of of 100GB iPods, Ultra Thin MacBooks, and of course, the iPhone. But what of the old rumor that Apple's eyeing the video game market? Yep, we've got that too.

What do we think? Unlikely.

Apple's done well in their current markets of PC and digital music because they've been able to keep their ecosystem closed. iPod + iTunes and the fact that you can't build your own Mac are examples of control Apple has over their products. Apple doesn't need to rely so much on third party providers to sell their systems.

If they get into the gaming arena, they're going to be at the mercy of game development studios to produce killer titles for yet another console in an already crowded horse race.

However, Prudential analyst Jesse Tortora says Apple's been hiring video game designers and thinking about entering the video game market sometime in the next few years. Tortora says the decision to enter may be based on how well the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles do as media hubs for the living room, something Apple's also trying to do with their upcoming iTV. – Jason Chen

Apple rumored to be eyeing video game market [Apple Insider via Crunchgear]

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