More Channeling

In the movie Videodrome James Woods plays a TV executive search the satellite airwaves for sleazy content to satisfy the more basic desires of his audience. While this movie moves in the realm of the bizarre with Mr. Woods storing videos within a gash on his abdomen (picture here), in one scene he is told that in the future (after 1983) people will have a real and a video persona. This prediction turned out to be more accutate than the writer could have known with the exception the we now have a real and cyber personas.

Enter now the next idea in college sports broadcasting, a channel devoted to a single school. Tim Griffin Express-News article puts forth the idea that the University of Texas might be interested in going this way. The idea of sitting down to watch your school's volleyball team or tennis team is a bit fair fetched.

This idea raises several interesting questions and observations:

1. How many schools can justify their own place on the cable/satellite listings?
   
2. Could education content somehow sneak into the mix?
   
3. Would having your own channel erode the importance of the conferences?
   
4. Do you have the Fight Irish Channel yet?
   
5. Will consumers be forced to carry the cost, like it or not?
   
6. Is there any chance the Spicy channel will squeezed out?
   

While this is an interesting idea the establishment of 119 college football channels is...just down right silly. If you want to see the future of broadcasting look to the Sky, Big Skyas ability to distributed quality video content via IPTV (Internet Protocol Television)in the few years will allow the easy distribution of specialty video. The key to making these reality will be the introduction of the next generation of broadband such as FIOS.

The AD in college sports will now need hire a coach, a media specialist and an IT director all with vision and savvy.