While the networks are doing all they can to shut down Google TV (for reasons we don’t quite comprehend), there are others who want nothing more than to break the whole thing wide open. Such is the case with the offering of the “Google TV Root Bounty,” a $1000 reward being offered up over at MagicAndroidApps for the first person to complete a successful root via software hacking. The bounty bends the definition of “root” slightly by asking that for the prize to be claimed the Google TV box will have to accept the installation of third party applications, and accomplish it before Google unveils the Android Market for the device.

A little bit of ingenuity and work is all that separates some lucky duck from a solid grand and the ability to play Android apps in the living room. Can someone jump on this, please?

[thanks, Mr. Android!]