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Current.TV is a television channel. I know it's available via DirecTV, but there's probably other outlets for it as well. The concept is to allow people to create short documentaries about subjects they feel are important. These short docs are then run on the channel when they get enough votes on line. If you consistently produce good material, Current.TV will give you a contract to produce more material. If it's YouTube, then it's YouTube for people with actual talent, equipment, and something actually interesting to say. Seriously. When was the last time you saw something like this?

Dont forget that he's on the board of Apple. He's also an unofficial advisor to google and cofounded something called Current TV which I'd never heard of before, but looks like youtube. Are there even any other politicians as tech saavy as he is, much less one that is hoped to be running for president?

1. a spoof of those pc guy/ mac guy ads with jobs and gates in the appropriate roles.

IPHONE, BITCH!

here..so people know what it's about. Keep in mind this video presentation is a controlled environment where the simulated interrogation victim knows full well he can stop it at any time (unlike a real interrogation environment). Seems as awful as drowning - if not worse.

http://www.current.tv/ by Al Gore ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Current_TV )

The quality of video is soo good that I start wondering whether its really "viewer created content"

Before it happens I just want you people to know, myspace is cool, so cool in fact George Bush and Dick Cheney have one to boost their approval rating. http://www.current.tv/pods/supernews/PD03297 Wait.. maybe it isn't so cool at all. I swear if I hear the name K-Fed one more time -_-.

The video site http://www.current.tv/ has a similar setup, but they are connected to a TV network as well. Users submit videos, users watch them for free, and if other users mod them up enough, they get greenlit for airplay on the real TV channel. Then the makers get paid. $500 for your first greenlight.

Lots of great video content there already.

http://www.current.tv/studio/media/211

The biggest problem facing independent distribution is the signal-to-noise ratio. It's easy enough these days to make a movie, CD, app, or any other sort of media and distribute it -- and people are doing that nonstop. On any college campus, there are more artistic events than crowds to attend them. The problem is sorting out the good stuff and delivering it to passive consumers.

Old Media established itself performing that service. Now, it's becoming clear that we don't really need them to do it for us, with mainstream music and Hollywood blockbusters becoming ever more WTF-ish and handy Web apps making the task of finding high-quality independent stuff ever easier. I don't think consumers a whole see these copyrights as being anywhere near as valuable as the corporate owners do. Remember that Netscape used to sell for $40 [didn't check fact at all], videotapes used to sell for aroun $99, and a CD with one good song would sell for $20 (as opposed to $0.99 on iTunes). I'm suggesting that a media copyright isn't a perfect monopoly: As competitive, free and independent media proliferates, the value of a media copyright approaches zero.

Steve Wozniak, the (co)founder of Apple Computers, once remarked that he thought every one would write the software he or she needed, and people would be free of the big software companies forever! While many quality open source applications are available, there are still many software niches where open source alternatives are either nonexistent or lacking compared to a commercial alternative.

It gets better every year. I've found OOo even more effective than MS Office, at a company where everyone else is using MS Office. That's nuts.

When desktop publishing software became affordable, some analysts predicted that every person could have their own magazine; this is not the case.

Note the following:

• Blogger
• Livejournal
• Myspace
• Purevolume
• MP3.com [RIP]
• CurrentTV
• How are you unable to find pr0n online?

Yes, the analysts were wrong: Everyone actually has several of their own magazines now. The problem is that media isn't worth what it used be. So media companies struggle to hold onto the most valuable things they have, while consumers see less and less importance in any single item.

Saw a segment on this DJ School on Current. Looks like a great way to get started without dropping tons on turntables. They also have a training DVD.

http://www.scratch.com/

http://www.current.tv/studio/media/1468855

Top Google Searches every hour or so.

Whatever happened to the much-hyped Al Gore TV network?

I watched Current when it launched. I guess I'm not the target market, but it really wasn't that entertaining to me. Only a fraction of the programming is actually submitted by viewers - the rest is professionally-produced. The commercials were very, very frequent - it wasn't uncommon to get a spot between every "pod." I almost prefer a long block of commercials at the same time. There's also been some controversy about the launch - altered policies resulted in producers having less control of their shows and less viewer created content than originally planned.

The funny thing is, during the two weeks before Current launched, I really began to respect NewsWorld International (the news channel Current bought out and cancelled as an easy way to get channel space). They provided an alternative perspective to CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC, and they did so very well. During the brief period I watched the two networks, I decided that NewsWorld matched my tastes much more closely. I miss them.

I don't know for sure, but based on the channel listing on the web site, it doesn't look like they picked up any new cable systems since the launch.

It was a good idea, but I don't think Current is ready for prime-time yet. Current's goal was to enable people to get their voice out. Public access does a better job of this.

Current TV exists, but I have an extra-long attention span* and so I cannot watch a TV network where the average program is 5 minutes long.

* Mitch Hedberg reference

I especially like how the report was later confirmed that the four children died of the result of those beatings, and on the video it is apparent to see that one had already "expired" by the applied "cleansing ritual" remeniscent of that little episode in Vietnam when the US Army bombed civilians. I like that pool of blood coming from that one dead kid's ear, that it looks like he kinda suffocates in as well. Or even better was how the one kind they were really beating up on, his wounds worse than the Rodney King beating, gets a loud smack right on the crown of his skull by that baton.

Ha ha. What is funnier than all of this, is the post above the parent post in the reply that says for this "offtopic shit" to get out of here. Ha Ha... "Die", "naughty boys", "die". Yes, demonize the pebble-throwing children because their parents are out working for a living to make any protest on foreigners putting road-blocks and checkpoints on their land. Iraq is a free country, as long as you have a gun in your hand and everyone knows you are willing to use it and there are people on your shoulders just like you. This is all unlike the United States and the United Kingdom and the United Nations (those Freemasons realy know how to pick all the cool names, unlike "Iraq" and "Canada" eh?) that would just assumed everyone peacably assembling was rioting

Yeah, we know that same example above doesn't apply to the United States (not the United States of America or The United States of America in the Articles of Confederation mind you). The United States is a peace-loving NATION, not plural States United for a common defense.

God bless(ed) you. What are you going to do with the blessing(life)?

I especially like how the report was later confirmed that the four children died of the result of those beatings, and on the video it is apparent to see that one had already "expired" by the applied "cleansing ritual" remeniscent of that little episode in Vietnam when the US Army bombed civilians. I like that pool of blood coming from that one dead kid's ear, that it looks like he kinda suffocates in as well. Or even better was how the one kind they were really beating up on, his wounds worse than the Rodney King beating, gets a loud smack right on the crown of his skull by that baton.

Ha ha. What is funnier than all of this, is the post above the parent post in the reply that says for this "offtopic shit" to get out of here. Ha Ha... "Die", "naughty boys", "die". Yes, demonize the pebble-throwing children because their parents are out working for a living to make any protest on foreigners putting road-blocks and checkpoints on their land. Iraq is a free country, as long as you have a gun in your hand and everyone knows you are willing to use it and there are people on your shoulders just like you. This is all unlike the United States and the United Kingdom and the United Nations (those Freemasons realy know how to pick all the cool names, unlike "Iraq" and "Canada" eh?) that would just assumed everyone peacably assembling was rioting

Yeah, we know that same example above doesn't apply to the United States (not the United States of America or The United States of America in the Articles of Confederation mind you). The United States is a peace-loving NATION, not plural States United for a common defense.

God bless(ed) you. What are you going to do with the blessing(life)?

Google is already involved in television. They are involved in a cable channel called Current TV, in that they have a show on that channel called Google Current.

The basic principle, as far as I can tell, for the show is that the stories are chosen not on what some news editor thinks is news, but instead the topics are chosen based on information about which Google queries are most popular. (Kind of based on Google Zeitgeist.)

For what it's worth, another notable feature of Current TV is that supposedly 1/3 of their programming is produced by viewers rather than the network. This turns the traditional TV model (where networks produce content, and viewers do nothing but consume, i.e. purely one-way communication) on its ear. It's not quite like the Internet where almost anyone can self-publish almost anything, but it is an interesting twist on things.

Al Gore's commentary contains some significant hypocrisy, particularly since he has been instrumental in the creation of his own TV network ("Current"). I'm assuming that "Current" makes money when individuals spend significant amounts of time watching TV. Perhaps what he really wants is a larger share of that 4 hours and 28 minutes/day.

If fact, his recent address has nothing to do with the amount of TV people are watching. Instead, it has everything to do with the content. I suspect the Gore secretly longs of the days of the Big Three + CNN, without any competition (e.g. Fox News, various blogs to the right and left) to make a mess of his own socio-political philosophy and agenda.

Google already has a TV presence. There is a channel on DirecTV (Channel 366) called "Current TV" and Google has a presence on there multiple times per hour. See The Schedule.

Current is also carried in a couple of other major markets. I'm surprised this hasn't been brought up more often.

Google already has a TV presence. There is a channel on DirecTV (Channel 366) called "Current TV" and Google has a presence on there multiple times per hour. See The Schedule.

Current is also carried in a couple of other major markets. I'm surprised this hasn't been brought up more often.

There is a new network on DirectTV feeds called 'Current TV'

It uses google search data for news broadcasts and story selection. It also lets users submit content.

Google runs or is somehow related to a new television network. http://www.current.tv/

I've been watching this new network on DirectTV.
Basically they do serveral things well. The network is really addictive to watch.

- All (almost all) shows are 7 minutes long unless they are REALLY interesting.
- Viewers can submit video's and Current.tv airs them.
- They use google search statistics to find new things to air.
- They have a 'Google News' segment every half hour that is a short news broadcast based on Google search statistics.
- You can bet that Advertisers are buying these statistics too.

It is kind of like randomly searching the web without having to use the HUGE amount of energy it takes to push the mouse around. :)

Perhaps you haven't seen Current TV yet... Not only do they allow viewer content submissions, allow "pod" viewing on their website, and have a radically different approach to showing their content, they are also apparently heavily backed by Google.

Now, none of that is really that important. What *is* important, IMHO, is how Current TV does advertising. They don't seem to be having a lot of commercials in your standard sense (they do have some -- but I guess because they are mostly submissions they don't need as much revenue to pay $1m/episode salaries) they do have integrated commercial content (i.e. a "pod" about Pioneer's latest in-dash navigation system which uses XM traffic data to reroute you).

I am sometime mesmerized by Current TV and sit there watching repeated content because it's *that* interesting. I don't particularly care for the blatant advertising "pods" but they are sometimes interesting the first time through.

If you haven't seen Current TV, check it out.

Google already has a semblance of a TV presence now on Current TV (http://current.tv/ Every 30 minutes or so Current runs a short video bit derived from recent popular search items. You also get treated to a faux-Ramones (or is it real? I can't quite tell) version of "What a Wonderful World"

As riveting TV goes, I think Current has a way to go, but its off to a good start. A lot of the stuff is fairly iteresting, although some of the political humor, like "Super News", is dreadfully heavy handed. And as an added bonus, one of its guiding lights is the 43rd President of the United States and Internet-inventor Al Gore.

Maybe it is related to Gore TV? You know, the cable station that has a lot of Google branding?

It will be interesting to see how they combine the two mediums, no matter what the results are.

Google, Skype and the Future of IM

Oh, I see...

'cept they have yet to cover current_ which seems to have a tight association to Google

Shitspot: News for Turds, Stuff that splatters

http://www.current.tv/

What about our good friend, we have no casting anything without Al inventing the Internet (j/k). But is it really limited to audio only? Check out 366 on Direct TV. I am actually fairly addicted to it.

If this is any indication, BBC is taking the concept of Internet broadcasting *very* seriously.

Now if only we could get the same brains behind the BBC to take over the operations of another possibly doomed TV/tech venture, maybe something good like this could happen in my own backyard!

So basically, they're trying to do for radio what Current is doing for video. The difference is no one is going to listen to what KYOU puts on the air, because there's already similar content all over the Internet. Current actually seems like something new and innovative, rather than a way to save a dying radio station.

Regardless, the advancements that have been made in the digital age have lowered the barrier to entry for being a content creator. Personally, I think the next decade of audio and video is going to evolve similar to the blogging revolution. Sure, there's going to be lots of crap out there, but there's also going to be good stuff that we'd never be exposed to otherwise.

This reminds me a LOT of the upcoming Current TV.

What a troll. This was to point out that Meetup is now charging for what was once a free service. It's not an ad. It's just informative. Personally, I'm the organizer of the Current TV group in Milwaukee. We just got off the ground, but now we're going to have to end this unless Current can pay. I heard about the fact that they were charging from this very article (Meetup also sent out an email but I hadn't checked it yet). Meetup was great while it lasted. Now we'll probably just move to a different site.

Hey, why can't I leave comments on your blog? I thought this was supposed to be participatory! Creating community spaces that are both open and useful is a challenge. Some sites have risen to it by insisting on strict registration policies; other use cool collaborative filtering schemes.

Why not post the link to the Current TV homepage?

It's pretty, and it the layout works with Firefox (unlike some sites)

Could Google be behind Ourmedia or Al Gore's Current TV? Angela Beesley, one of the five directors of the Wikimedia Foundation, is on the Ourmedia Board of Directors. Al Gore has been a senior adviser at Google and Current TV is receiving support from Google and Google's Video Search.