Friday was a fairly big day regarding Apple and the television world.

First, the company has released the Apple TV 3.0 software update. Apple TV has sort of become the forgotten middle child in the big consumer electronics push Apple has embarked upon in the last 5-10 years. While the iPod is still a big deal, and the iPhone is just about the most sought-after smartphone on the market, Apple's set-top box has more or less become an afterthought for most.

If you do have an Apple TV, however, you can look forward to a pretty significant update. Among the changes will be a new interface, better iTunes support, and the addition of the new iTunes Extra and LP features. While it may not be enough to sell you on the cost of a new Apple TV, the ability to pull up the artwork and bonus features from iTunes LP should look pretty cool on a decent-sized HDTV.

There's also news regarding Apple's advertising efforts. Lee Clow, the advertising mind behind two of Apple's most famous campaigns, is stepping down from his position at advertising firm TBWA.

Clow made his mark with Apple in 1984, when he helped to create the company's iconic Super Bowl advertisement. The ad announced the coming of the Macintosh computer and to this day is regarded as one of the best television spots ever.

More recently, Clow came up with the "Get a Mac" campaign that got Microsoft so worked up they launched a massive advertising push of there own to counter the widely-successful Apple spots.

30 Oct 2009