Goodbye, Analog
Today marks the end of Analog TV broadcasting and the final switch to digital only broadcasting in the USA otherwise known as the DTV transition. The date was changed at least once and the process took a little longer than was initially expected, but the time has now come to say farewell to Analog TV. If you're reading this and you have no idea what I'm talking about then check to see if you're using an antenna and if not, you're probably okay... The biggest question is how could you have missed all the annoying "Are you Ready" ads by Comcast and other various announcements saying that you can get a converter box and you need to be ready for digital? Even YouTube has joined the party and is celebrating or marking the occasion with a Goodbye, Analog YouTube Animated logo:
Getting rid of the Analog TV broadcast frees up a huge amount of airwaves for future use. I'm hoping that this could help with some new modern 4G wireless networks that will be faster and better than ever. I'm sure this is still a little while off and it'll cost you extra money... Or maybe some more open free to the public band for newer WiFi would work. Either way, I welcome the new uses of the airwaves.
In the meantime, I just want to say welcome to Digital TV and Goodbye, Analog...
Co-Op Now on Revision3
I was disappointed when I heard that 1up.com laid off the guys that put together The 1up show. It really was one of the only reasons I ever went to 1up.com afterall. Shortly after their unfortunate lay offs, the team decided to start up Area5.tv and their own video podcast called Co-Op. Upon visiting Revision3.com this morning, I noticed that Co-Op is now on Rev3!
This little fact was actually announced first in the latest episode of Rev3's The Digg Reel. The host, Andrew Bancroft, stated "We've got a new show on Rev3, it's called Co-Op." He went on to say "It's all about videogames and it's from the guys who brought you the 1UP videogame show." The show will be released every Tuesday so they'll be held to a tight timeline, but hopefully they'll be able to deliver good content that won't overlap Revision 3's The Totally Rad Show's gaming coverage too much.
I'm extremely curious about the business arrangement here since other shows that weren't produced by Rev3 such as Wine Library TV are no longer with Revision 3 after some tightening of their belts. However, I think it's a great home for Co-Op and I can't see how it wouldn't be a successful partnership. I'm wondering if Area5.tv will produce anything else independently since they've already got that going... Several people donated to their cause and helped them buy some new camcorder gear so I'm also curious if they'll be using that or Rev3 gear for their shoots.