I’m pleased to announce a project I’ve been planning and working on with the folks at KnoxIVI. I’m calling it the Biz After Hours Lounge. I adopted @BizAfterHours as my Twitter name some time ago. I moved to Knoxville, Tennessee from Dayton, Ohio earlier this year, and found this unique company.

Knoxville IVI logo

KnoxIVI (the IVI part stands for Internet Video), is a hyper-local internet video broadcasting company, providing on-demand content for and about the Knoxville area. The company’s slogan is “New Answers for New Media”. KnoxIVI has studio space in downtown Knoxville‘s Market Square, and full facilities including HD. The public is invited to see shows being produced, and have a sandwich or a cup of coffee from a menu of items from The Lunchbox. Signature shows include “The 11′O’Clock Rock” (live musical performances broadcast live at 11am weekdays), The Bowl of OH! (a look at pop culture and local happenings), The Scruffy Citizen, and Mary’s Kitchen and Garden. I invite you to check out KnoxIVI‘s new website and shows.

I approached KnoxIVI shortly after arriving in Knoxville, and batted around a few ideas. I was informed that some additions to their Business channel could be a good idea. So, the Biz After Hours lounge is at least a reality on paper. The Biz After Hours Lounge will feature the stories of East Tennessee entrepreneurship. Far from being a talking heads business show that you might find on CNBC, we will be meeting entrepreneurs where they are, and inviting a studio audience when we produce the show. (That will be an excellent opportunity to network). We might even challenge celebrity guests or students to perform tasks reminiscent of “The Apprentice” (but no firings, no board rooms, and no bad combovers!). More people than ever are exploring entrepreneurship, and we will have helpful information on everything from home-based businesses, to buying and selling existing businesses.

We will be looking for interesting guests from East Tennessee, and thanks to Skype, from around the country and even the world. There are excellent sponsorship opportunities that will be available.

A certain amount of advertising will have to be sold to begin production. A rough target date is January 2011, and the Biz After Hours Lounge will be a weekly presentation.

I’ll keep you posted and welcome your comments and suggestions for topics or guests.

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