Peter Jackson is in the "more money than God" tax bracket. He's not making a third Hobbit movie for the money.

I'm not personal friends with the guy. I've never spoken to him in person. I really, really love his early films as well as his Lord of the Rings trilogy. King Kong lost a bit of its luster after the first viewing, and The Lovely Bones is a narrative that I'm convinced no one could make "fun" (since it's drenched in dreariness).

If there's a third movie to be made, it's because the narrative bears out with the breathing room of three features. As far as I know, part of the issue is the 150-160 minute limit arbitrarily placed on the studio by the exhibitors. Jackson isn't making a trio of 4-hour movies, and I trust that he is focused on telling the best story possible. Then again, I think that 48fps isn't an aberration on the face of cinema, so what do I know.