Is The Jerk going into the game consol biz?

There's not really much more to this story than the headline tells, but nonetheless, if the grapevine is to be believed, then Apple's latest trademark filing could well be the indicator that it intends to break into the games console domain. Of course these rumours have surfaced before, to no avail, but that doesn't mean we're not intrigued by what might be produced.

The change to the trademark itself is fairly vague and broad-based, covering the use of the brand Apple in relation to "toys, games and playthings, namely, hand-held units for playing electronic games; hand-held units for playing video games; stand alone video game machines; electronic games other than those adapted for use with television receivers only; LCD game machines; electronic educational game machines; toys, namely battery-powered computer games."

Clearly from such an ambiguous filing there's no way to tell what kind of device, if any, Apple might be planning. Given the iron grip held by the Nintendo's DS over the portable games console market it does seem a little odd to suggest Apple might be aiming to enter the arena. Then again, the company does have a proven track record of creating innovative and highly desirable products.

In all honesty I expect this will turn out just to be a case of Apple wanting to ensure that if it ever did want to produce a gaming device it would be able to, as well as ensuring no other company can use its brand in such a fashion. You can color me surprised if this one comes to fruition.

http://www.trustedreviews.com/apple/news/2008/02/11/Apple-Readying-Games-Console/p1