Movie studios, music TV channels - it seems like everyone want a piece of the videogames industry today, and online reports are today suggesting that search engine giant, Google, could be about to enter the market too.

According to The Inquirer and 'well placed sources', Google is on the verge of acquiring Half-Life and Left 4 Dead developers, Valve Software, with an potential announcement at this week's Game Developers Conference in Austin, Texas.

Google's main interest in the firm apparently rests with Valve's Steam content distribution system, which has become increasing popular with publishers in the last couple of years as a way to digitally distribute their titles. So far, the likes of 2K Games, Eidos, and Activision have all signed up to Steam, alongside indie studios such as Introversion (Darwinia) and Media Molecule (Rag Doll Kung Fu).

Neither Google nor Valve has issued a statement on the reports, but the acquisition would certainly give Google a leg up in the ongoing battle for online supremacy against Microsoft.