Comedy Troupe Orgy

Anyone notice a trend of comedy troupes/shows intermingling more?

Not just in the ubiquitous Judd Apatow flicks, though the comedy troupe mashups in those are a prime example of the phenomenon.

In a recent episode of the bizarro alt-comedy (as "alt" as it gets) Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, there were representatives from

The Kids in the Hall (Scott Thompson)
Saturday Night Live (Will Forte)
The State/Stella (David Wain)
Mr. Show (Bob Odenkirk)
As well as elder statesman Larry Miller and the increasingly self-parody-friendly Josh Groban.

This in a show that's less than 15 minutes long!

Human Giant, Tenacious D, Flight of the Conchords, actors from The Office, Judd Apatow's regulars. They all pop up in each other's projects. (Though no one seems to have invited anyone from The Whitest Kids U'Know to the party yet...)

Back in the day, I think comedy troupes kept to themselves more. The early days of SNL. Monty Python. SCTV. Kids in the Hall. (Anyone remember The Vacant Lot?) There was some intermingling and special guest spots, but there was far more segregation. It wasn't the free-flowing talent-exchange that seems to exist today.

Is it because there are more media options today? More ways for the different groups to be exposed to each other? Is there some comedy troupe summit where all the groups party? What's the big conspiracy here?