Is The Hobbit Part of The Lord of the Rings?

I've seen there is a trailer on Youtube called The Hobbit and it makes me think whether or not that new movie is part of The Lord of the Rings trilogy as a prequel or an independent story with no connection.
It looks like it is a part of the other three movies. I think The Hobbit is going to be such as great movie like The Lord of the Rings, and it will probably get nominations for the Oscar and many other awards, especially because it's directed by Peter Jackson. Do you know if The Hobbit is part of The Lord of the Rings movies?

Yes, it's part of The Lord of the Rings but The Hobbit is starred by a character called Bilbo Baggins who's part of LOTR, so I think the rest of the characters won't be there. I can't tell you much about The Hobbit because I haven't read the books but I know it's part because it's a prequel of The Lord of the Rings. As you said before, The Hobbit will surely be a great movie as its director is Peter Jackson but it would be better if the movie didn't long 4 hours like The Lord of the Rings because it can be tedious.