eric rochow : social media handyman

“OLN, the Comcast-owned cable channel known until last summer as the Outdoor Life Network, will have a new name in September, Reuters reported. The new name, Versus, captures its essence, said Gavin Harvey, its president. Clear Channel Communications has announced that it plans to make some of its programming available to rival radio broadcasters, Reuters reported. The audio, video and text programming is expected to be used for Internet channels, station Web sites, iPods, satellite broadcasts and high-definition radio broadcasts, among other outlets. ‘’We have become agnostic about delivery,’’ John Hogan, the chief executive of Clear Channel Radio, said in a statement.
Changing Signals, The New York Times, April 25, 2006″

Well, I about fell out of my chair when I read the word agnostic used in reference to the internet. A bit of deja’ vu to the last dot com boom.

During the first boom, I was always trying to get on the inside, I would attend these seminars, (which always seemed to be held in the Puck Building) and listen to presenters who explained their new web companies; how they were building virtual communities thru viral marketing, etc… Yet it was a bit like the Emperor’s New Clothes. In the back of my head was always this question: OK, this is neat, but how do you make money?

As we know now, most didn’t.

Platform agnostic was a phrase bandied about every 5 minutes. Repurposing, and Brick & mortar, (referring to regular retail stores) were heard often.

After the crash, you knew when one of your friends had lost her/his job, as you would get an email alerting you to their new email address, @hotmail.com.

In this, what I call the 2nd boom, it all seems to be falling into place. Being agnostic about media format is not that big of a deal, its easy enough to pump out programming in a number of formats.