To put it frankly, I thought that perhaps splitting The Hobbit into two films was a good idea, but making three out of it is terrible. The LOTR books are larger and richer than the lone Hobbit, yet they crammed them all into three lengthy films (and I do prefer the extended cuts). The Hobbit is still rich enough to make two standard films without taking too many liberties, but now I worry that much of this will simply be Middle Earth according to Peter Jackson, and not very faithful to Tolkein's vision. I don't know what could be gained by this except perhaps creating an entirely unique bridge between the two tales, but I still don't feel it is wise. Sorry, I think I've repeated myself enough. If you still cannot tell, I don't support this move.