as if node.js didn't make it trivial enough, it's built on top of socket.io, which now handles the concept of channels for you :P Bi-directional message passin

as if node.js didn't make it trivial enough, it's built on top of socket.io, which now handles the concept of channels for you :P Bi-directional message passing in real-time is a solved problem and I am not sure how many companies are willing to pay a license for this type of software if they can get away with using a hosted service like Pusher.