Archive for the ‘Society’ Category
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
A television broadcast doesn’t just happen out of nowhere. There’s usually a huge team of people working behind the scenes all busy at putting the channel’s programming on the air. However, this channel doesn’t have the resources or personnel required to operate a typical television channel. So let’s try something radically different instead.
Let’s develop the world’s first multi-platform automated television broadcasting system specifically designed to broadcast on traditional cable and digital satellite as well as the Internet and mobile devices, all at the same time, and with as little human intervention as technically possible.
This new system will not be a Frankenstein type system where the Internet and mobile device support will be added after the traditional broadcast version has already been implemented. Instead, this new automated broadcast system will include everything already created for the traditional broadcast chain, and expand the entire concept into new media platforms such as Video-on-Demand, the Internet, mobile platforms, and any other device suitable for video playback of both live and pre-recorded content.
Some of the system’s features will include automated multi-platform media generation, IP based distribution for both broadcast distribution undertakings and the general public, discrete embedded advertising, live and deferred Web streaming as well as BitTorrent mass distribution, programming and advertising scheduling and accounting, and multi-level redundancy.
This new system will feature so many specialized components, it’s possible the entire project may be too much for any single company to handle on their own, and still manage to deliver a quality product to market. So instead, the project will require the participation of many individual companies, each fully qualified to complete the system components best suited for their field of expertise.
A preliminary technical brief (available to any corporate representative upon request) lists the main components of the system along with their basic features and requirements. A private Web site will soon be created where the project’s participants can exchange ideas, concepts and design changes as well as upload prototypes and final versions of their individual contributions.
And yes, this will become a long term revenue generating venture. But only if you participate! So if your company has worked in the field of television and Internet broadcasting in the past, and is not afraid to take a chance on a project that may have huge potential for growth, please contact me.
Posted in Management, Society, Technology | No Comments »
Saturday, May 30th, 2009
By now, the competition has been long over, and news of the outcome has spread far and wide.
My choice, Diversity, has won!
I was hoping the dance team Diversity would be the winner; they were the best act of the night and of the entire competition. I was a bit disappointed however that the other excellent dance team Flawless didn’t make it in the Top 3 as well. Those two acts really made this year’s competition shine big time. And I have no doubt that Flawless will still enjoy a decent amount of success in the coming months.
As for Susan Boyle, she did have center stage for a while, but the dream is now over. It’s time for her to go back to her real life which, based on how much the pressure was affecting her during the last few days, might be a relief. I doubt she expected such a media frenzy to form around her singing abilities. Also, she never managed to improve beyond her initial performance, while many of the other contestants simply got better over time which includes this year’s winners.
Then again, chances are we haven’t heard the last from her, or from any of the other contestants including 12 year old Callum Francis whose number “Bare Necessities” from Disney’s “The Jungle Book” performed during the fourth semi-final round should have earned him a spot in the finals. No matter. He’ll most likely find work in London’s West End theatre district very soon. It’ll definitely help pay for the £10,000 per year tuition at the Sylvia Young Theatre School in London which regrettably his parents can no longer afford.
Honorable mention goes to father-and-son duo Stavros Flatley. It’s becoming incredibly rare to find such a strong bond between father and son these days, especially with modern technology creating huge barriers between generations. And even though they didn’t win the competition, it was obvious they were both having the time of their lives out on that stage. Their return to real life will definitely be smooth sailing for both of them.
I really love this show. Unlike its American counterpart, I find the judging on the original British version to be fair and balanced even though things can get a bit nasty at times. Sometimes the audience is more hostile than the judges!
That’s the British for you. If you’re real good, they’ll cheer you all the way. If you’re bad, you’ll find out very quickly! No mercy!
Now the big question. Could such a show work in Canada? Do we have enough talent to support a show of this calibre? And how much would it cost to produce? The logistics alone must be a real nightmare.
Posted in News, Programming, Society | 1 Comment »
Saturday, May 16th, 2009
Now while this channel does have a rule against the promotion of hate, it won’t be afraid to stir up some controversy at times in order to foster some healthy discussions concerning certain topics. So I present to you all the first in a series of on-line Tolerance Tests: The Chia Obama.
(Click on any of the images to view/download the full size version)
The 80s revival rock band style hairdo was the result of putting the Chia Obama on a windowsill with its face pointed away from the window. The chias then all grew towards the light.
And what’s the secret to a healthy Chia Obama you may ask? Follow the instructions, and water it at least twice a day, more often if you possibly can. Keep those seeds moist!
So does anyone have any opinions about this? Does it have any hidden political or racial messages in it? Or is it just another gimmick that takes advantage of an individual’s celebrity status?
A thought. How would the Obama kids react to this thing if they received one as a gift? Chances are their reaction would be much different and more child-like than all the “grown-up” reactions that have sprouted all over the Internet when this thing was first announced, just before Walgreen’s pulled it from their store shelves.
Posted in Oddities, Society | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008
As I’ve mentioned in the Production page, this channel has three basic submission rules.
- No explicit depictions of human sexuality,
- No promotion of religion,
- No promotion of hatred.
This doesn’t mean there can’t be any reasonable discussions on these subjects. It simply means that your submission can’t actively promote or exploit these particular subject matters. For example, you can discuss issues related to human sexuality, but you can’t actually show anyone engaged in sexual activity.
It’s important to understand that the scope of these rules extends to paid advertising.
Recently, the Conservative party has been running advertising on Canadian radio and television in an attempt to prevent the formation of a coalition government. This coalition would be formed by the Liberal and NDP parties, with the Bloc Québecois promising not to interfere in the process or vote against the coalition government for a set amount of time.
However, considering the Bloc Québecois’ close relationship with the French Canadian population, by constantly emphasizing the “Separatist Bloc” in their ads, the Conservative party is giving the impression that French Canadians are responsible for the current political crisis. Because of this indirect and passive promotion of hatred against French Canadians, the ads would not be cleared for broadcast on this channel.
When I originally proposed my concept for a public access television channel on many public on-line forums and listed my basic rules, one individual jokingly suggested that I add “No politics” to the rules. After hearing the Conservative ads, I’m starting to wonder if I should.
Posted in Advertising, News, Programming, Society | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 25th, 2008
This is a piece from MSNBC featuring Countdown’s Keith Olbermann commentating on the Sara Palin interview where a turkey is being rendered (i.e. “killed”) in the background. It has nothing to do with this television channel whatsoever. It’s just something completely surreal that I wanted to share with all of you.
Young and sensitive viewers may want to skip this one unless you plan to become a vegetarian.
My father, who passed away last year, and who was a true political junkie, would have loved this piece.
Posted in News, Society | No Comments »
