Virgin Games, which later became known as Virgin Interactive, looks to make a return to the video game business, as Sir Richard Branson will bring the brand back for another go in this space. While we are not exactly clear on what Branson has planned for what is being called an “online only interactive initiative,” we do know that it intends to break from its game publishing past.

Although sources that we have spoken with claim that the new venture could have more in common with an online streaming service (such as OnLive) than any traditional form of game publishing, it is really anyone’s guess what will likely be announced at E3. Talk suggests that the company is looking for partnerships with current publishers, and they will leverage these in the new business model that Virgin is launching.

Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, Virgin was a publishing powerhouse for successful gaming titles on a variety of platforms. When the gaming market started to crash, Virgin sold off its operations to Electronic Arts, with the rest going to Titus, which was a French-based operation that didn’t make it. Most recently, the Virgin name has reappeared on a number of online titles and as a partner in the recent A World of My Own service, which is a download service similar to Direct2Drive or Steam.

Some think that the new Branson initiative with Virgin Interactive will be directly tied to the A World of My Own service, which claims to be the fastest high-performance download service in combination with some sort of platform streaming technology. We will have to till E3 to see what Virgin has to offer, but knowing Branson it will be at least colorful and could be very profitable before it is all said and done.