I don´t think Nintendo has any intentions of purchasing EA.There are a very conservative company.

I think you mean game industry, cause they have been a leader in the software industry for ages.... final cut would like a word with you 

Media industry?

Gaming software industry?

Apple creates platforms, not content. It's part of what makes them successfull.

well played         I could list the entire back portfolio or just whats  for sale now, either way it covers pretty much the same areas as MS. with the noted exception of video/computer game production. and apple does have a history of buy companies/applications to break into an industry.... Itunes bought, final cut bought, OSX bought,  granted all of those were rough and not  recognizable as what we use today or even recognizable from when they were bought to when apple first used it as an apple product (well except OSX 10.0 looked alot like nextstep with just a bit more polish and alot less stability )

I hope it's true because I don't like EA nor Apple, but it would be exciting with a fourth competitor in the console war.

Micheal Pachter chimes in on the Apple/EA rumor.  He agrees that it does not make much sense.

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter is highly skeptical of such talk, however. "Sounds retarded to me," he tells Gamasutra.

"Apple could buy Warner Music for around $3 billion, and control 20 percent of all recorded music," he says. "That makes more sense to their current business model than buying EA for more than twice that, doesn't it?"

"I don't want to start a rumor, but want to point out that Apple doesn't own any entertainment content," adds the analyst, "so I don't know why they would feel compelled to enter a new business unrelated to their current product slate."

Right. But what would the point be to buy EA? It's value would decrease a lot if they only made stuff for apple platforms, and it would be much much cheaper to moneyhat for the content if that's what you want.

They're not competing with each other, so you don't eliminate a competitor. They're not working with each other, so there wouldn't really be any integration. EA has nothing that Apple wants. And the two companies have, as far as I know, radically different corporate cultures, ideologies, goals and strategies. So what, really, is the potential upside?

AppStore has proved a monumental success for Apple, as well as iTunes. Why move away from this new approach and go back to the old way? It feels like it would go against everything Apple stands for.

...

Nintendo on the other hand, that I could see. That would have a much bigger potential for catastrophy, but could also make for gigantic success. :) I think.

EA isn't actually making any money - they are just losing heaps of it. Apple would have much better take over targets.

Part of the reason the AppStore business model is successful, is that Apple are NOT Nintendo - they are not dominating everyone else with their software.

Apple could do exactly the same thing as the iTouch, just on a bigger scale (i.e. larger device) - basically a PSP style device.

It would have iTunes, AppStore, and also have dedicated applications. It would run OSX. All they need is to improve their handheld tech (the iTouch/iPhone is actually fairly 'low-tech', just really well presented). They are hiring now the people they need for this.

While I certainly do not think Pacther's word choice describing this rumored transaction is in any way shape or form approrprirate, the sentiment is essentially correct.

Apple distributes the content of others over networks using propriatory software and hardware.

EA distributes essentially the same software (games) over a variety of hardware platforms.

This not only does not mesh well from business perspective, but there is a potential clash of corporate cultures.

Mike from Morgantown

Pachter is quite often wrong on his predictions...almost frightening wrong, but in this case, it isn't a prediction, and he's spot on about this.  Apple has craved a nice niche in music, and they are coming under pressure in that arena, so to diversify to other area that you totally lack any competentcy would either prove to be absolutely brilliant or the dumbest move in business.