Watchmen Prequels?

Rich Johnston on Bleeding Cool has been speculating about what seems like possible prequels to the legendary Watchmen series.

I don't use the term legendary lightly as the collected story has been heaped with praise over the years and critically considered within a wider milieu of modern prose.

It appears that Alan Moore will have nothing to do with this, although Dave gibbons may well be involved.

I found these images on the net and thought I would share them.

It looks like a few different artists could be working on these books, judging by the fact that Andy Kubert and Joe Kubert were responsible for one picture (Nite Owl), JG Jones another (Comedian), Amanda Connor another (Silk Spectre).

Assuming that these comic books do appear, I wonder if DC have some ultimate plan for the long-term, or simply aim to use them as another inevitably-hyped revenue stream. Could there be long-term publishing plans afoot, or just a splash event?