the problem is who would be interested enough to be a console competitor ? they all are already releasing their console devices either adroid, IOS or steam based, but they all lack physical media support which doesnt make them real consoles. The steam machine completely flopped or why we arent we hearing about this thing anymore?

Making just some device is one thing but releasing and distributing your games both digital and trough retail is another one, not to mention getting people to subscribe to your service like xbox live and PS+.

Except when it's 1996

I think it's pretty hard to enter the traditional console market right now. A new entry would really need to bring something special, something new and novel. Had Apple released the Wii instead of Nintendo, THAT would have been a great way to enter the market.

But I'd say Amazon, Valve, Apple, Google or Samsung. But WHY would any of those make a console? Valve is kind of making something similar with their Steam PCs... None of them have a SOLID 1st party library (Valve has a few games, but probably not enough to sustain a console of their own), and that's damn important.

Tencent. Basically a Chinese Yahoo/Google equivalent

They already own one of the biggest IPs in gaming : League of Legends (since Tencent owns Riot games).

They already own a big piece of Epic games, the group behind the Unreal Engine platform.

They're pretty involved in a lot of PC gaming in China. As consoles get more popular there, it wouldn't be surprising if they stepped in. A solid console launch in NA and Europe would give Tencent a foothold in those regions for other services.

Tencent is a $100 billion+ company. They have the resources to do it right and have a pretty solid understanding how to do F2P games well. I don't think Apple and Google are anywhere near on the same page.

I also wouldn't count out Amazon just yet either.

We aren't hearing anything about the Steam Machines because they still haven't been launched and we still have no ETA of when they will launch.

OT: I think it's more a question of who would like to enter the console market rather than who could. Apple, Google and Samsung could try to get  into the gaming (not console) market through other ways, but I don't see them entering with a proper console.

Wal-Mart maybe

I say Samsung cause they seem to enter virtually every market and they also dominate in a lot.

Wow Tencent definitely wasnt one I expected to show up here. While I think they do have the capacity to pull it off in China and most of Asia Im not so sure about the rest of the world. Not only that but I cant see it benefiting them. They are doing so well in the PC market that they cant possibly leave it, if consoles really do get popular in China they are better off just making popular games for the consoles then making their own console. To sell their own console they would need exclusives which are likely to sell much, much better elsewhere to the point where I think they would lower the value of a series by making it exclusive to their system instead of making them PC/Console/Mobile games.

Ah yes, will it be running Tizen too?? Just like their future phones and tablets =P

Loll probably since all their Smart TVs run Tizen