Aereo's online TV service launches amid legal challenges
Aereo, which captures broadcasts of local network TV on "tiny antennas" and streams them live for subscribers, has been sued by owners of networks including Fox, NBC, and PBS for copyright infringement. The service has launched in the NYC metropolitan area (with plans to expand into Boston soon), offering live broadcasts starting at $8 a month, but networks have filed an injunction to stop it from operating while the case is decided.
Aereo streaming TV service coming to Atlanta on June 17th
Aereo announced ambitious plans to launch in 22 new cities this year, and now it has just given details on the third city to receive the innovative streaming TV service. Atlanta residents will be able to access Aereo starting on June 17th — pre-registered customers will get an invite to join up for service that day, and it'll be available to all potential customers in the area one week later. Aereo says its service will be available to over 5.3 million residents in the Atlanta metropolitan...
Aereo streamlines its plans, eliminates daily and annual subscription options
Aereo has just announced that it is cutting back on the number of plans it offers by eliminating its $1 per day plan it introduced last summer as well as the option to have a cheaper annual subscription. Now, Aereo will only offer its its $8 monthly plan (which includes 20 hours of DVR storage) or a $12 monthly plan that triples DVR storage to 60 hours. Unfortunately for those who knew they were in for the long haul with Aereo, the $80 annual subscription will no longer be an option, which...
Crazy like a Fox: how broadcast networks could rake in billions by going cable-only
An array of Aereo's coin-sized antennas, designed to pick up TV signals and retransmit them to paying subscribers.
The bluster-fueled battle between upstart Aereo and incumbent over-the-air broadcasters has reached a fever pitch in recent days, most recently with a legal complaint designed to prevent CBS from filing another copyright lawsuit against the service as it prepares to launch in Boston later this month.
There's no love lost, and little hope for a truce. Legacy broadcasters...
Aereo files suit against CBS to head off second copyright claim from network
Aereo has filed a complaint today against CBS in an effort to prevent the network from filing additional lawsuits against the fledgling service.
Aereo is a web TV service that enables users to view over-the-air broadcasts via the web. Two groups of television networks — groups that include CBS, Fox, and NBC — filed copyright claims last year and argued that Aereo is an illegal service because it distributes their programming without compensating them. After losing two decisions in New...
CBS CEO Moonves says he could take network cable-only in 'a few days' if Aereo prevails
CBS CEO Les Moonves has said before that he’s talked with New York cable operators about taking his network cable-only if Aereo is allowed to keep streaming what it broadcasts on the internet, but now he’s saying that he could make the switch in as little as a few days "if we are forced to." By taking free CBS broadcasts off the airwaves, Moonves says, "about 10 percent of America will not get our signal and I don’t think they will like that." Aereo sells people access to individual TV...
CBS threatens to sue Aereo again, this time in Boston
CBS indicated today in a heated Twitter post from one of the company's public relations executives that the media giant intends to file another copyright complaint against Aereo — this time in Boston. Aereo uses the internet to connect TV viewers to tiny antennas housed at the company's facilities and enables them to watch over-the-air broadcasts on web-connected devices. The company is accused in lawsuits filed by CBS and many of the nation's other top broadcasters of stealing their...
Aereo coming to Boston on May 15th
Aereo, the company that lets users stream live broadcast TV over the Internet, is heading to Boston. Aereo announced today that beginning May 15th, customers in the Boston metropolitan area who pre-registered will receive invitations to be the first in their region to try out the service, which will include all 28 broadcast channels available right now over the air, as well as Bloomberg TV. General availability for all 4.5 million people in the Boston market, which includes parts of New...
News war: Aereo takes out full-page New York Times ad as network threats heat up
The GE Building at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, home of NBC.
On Tuesday, Aereo entered the public relations battle against the broadcast TV companies trying to shut it down: it took out a full page ad in The New York Times to publicize its court victories. The ad read in part: "The broadcast networks have been granted free and valuable broadcast spectrum worth billions of dollars in exchange for their commitment to act in the public interest. It's a sweet deal... Along the way, cable and satellite...
CBS CEO the latest to threaten dropping broadcast TV in response to Aereo
CBS CEO Les Moonves is the latest TV exec to publicly entertain the idea of halting free broadcast TV if streaming provider Aereo is allowed to continue its service. Responding to a question about News Corp. COO Chase Carey’s threats to make Fox cable-only, Moonves told The New York Times that he "wholeheartedly supported what Chase said." He explained that CBS was in preliminary talks with cable operators in the New York - Connecticut area (currently the only area in which Aereo operates)...
Nuclear option: would Fox really leave the free airwaves to undercut Aereo?
Talk about mixed messages: when Aereo first began offering consumers a way to get free network TV over the internet — on any device and on demand — CBS CEO Les Moonves said last year that the service wasn't causing him any loss of sleep. Fast forward to yesterday and executives from News Corp are warning that, if Aereo persists, Fox may pull programming off the free public airwaves and make it available only to paid cable subscribers.
News Corp threatens to move Fox to cable-only channel if Aereo isn't shut down
Fox may no longer operate as a free over-the-air channel if Aereo is allowed to continue operating, warns News Corp COO Chase Carey. In comments recorded by Bloomberg, Carey said that Fox and all its affiliate stations will stop broadcasting and move to cable in the event that Aereo is not shut down by the courts. "We need to be able to be fairly compensated for our content," Carey told other executives. "This is not an ideal path we look to pursue, but we can’t sit idly by and let an...
Explainer: What's Aereo, why does it matter, and will it kill cable?
Aereo is trying to make live TV available over the Internet and yesterday the company got a step closer. The United States Second Circuit Court of Appeals declined a request by some of the country's largest television networks to issue a preliminary injunction against Aereo, which would have closed the service down. The broadcasters allege that Aereo violates their copyrights by distributing their shows without compensating them. Aereo says all it is doing is helping people watch freely...
Aereo CEO predicts TV networks will go to Congress if lawsuits fail
Aereo CEO Chet Kanojia's demeanor was downright subdued today, despite his win in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. The court rejected a request from ABC, NBC, CBS, and other top broadcasters to issue a preliminary injunction against Aereo, the company he founded. The ruling means Aereo, which streams live TV to internet subscribers without compensating the networks, will not be shut down and therefore is a step closer to throwing traditional TV into a state of chaos.
"I'm very excited...
Aereo wins major court battle against TV networks
The United States Second Circuit Court of Appeals just rejected an appeal from TV networks against web-television company Aereo by a 2-1 vote, concluding that Aereo's system does not infringe the broadcaster's copyrights. Broadcasters argued that unlike Cablevision, Aereo lacked the proper license to operate — but the court ruled that the license doesn't matter since Aereo customers are streaming their own unique copies to themselves. The remarkably tech-savvy decision for Aereo today...
Aereo expands beyond NYC, brings service to parts of New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania
Aereo's unique TV streaming solution was already set to expand to 22 new cities this year, and that expansion begins in earnest today. The company just announced service availability for 29 new counties in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. Aereo now covers the entire New York City metropolitan region, which has a combined total population of 19 million. It's a pretty massive expansion for a service that was previously only available in New York City.
This expansion comes...
Online broadcast TV service Aereo still in legal limbo as aggressive westward expansion begins
Aereo, the service that lets you stream live broadcast TV over the web and Apple devices, is about to begin an ambitious westward conquest from New York City to 22 new markets. CEO Chet Kanojia announced the expansion and $38 million in fresh funding yesterday at the largest technology convention in the country, CES. The company will also be introducing a big marketing push, an Android app, and some splashy new hires in the spring.
One front where there's little news: Aereo's legal battle....
Aereo expanding to 22 more cities this year after $38 million funding round
Aereo's innovative broadcast TV streaming service will be expanding to 22 more cities this year, according to a report from All Things D. The company announced this expansion at the same time as it dropped details on a new $38 million round of funding that'll help finance this expansion. Now that the service is moving beyond New York City, Aereo also said that users will only be able to pull in local channels — so you won't be able to get Chicago's programming from Boston, for example. As...
Aereo licenses Bloomberg TV as first cable station
Thus far, streaming TV service Aereo has stayed squarely focused on local network TV channels, but that is just starting to change. According to The Wall Street Journal, Aereo has added its first cable channel in the form of Bloomberg TV. As of today, the channel is streaming to Aereo subscribers; it's a result of a partnership between the two companies in which Aereo will pay Bloomberg for its content. This comes in contrast to the Aereo's other stations — the company famously launched...
HD & Home
Aereo rolls out aggressive new pricing plans: an hour for free, $1 per day
Aereo has unveiled new pricing plans for its streaming television services in preparation for its expansion beyond New York City. This move comes less than a month after a judge refused to grant an injunction filed by several major TV content providers that would shut down the service. Aereo previously offered a flat rate of $12 per month, but now has a variety of new tiers — including a "try for free" option that allows one hour of continuous streaming for free every day, without the...
Web & Social
Aereo planning rollout to 'most' major US markets by 2013
Yesterday a New York federal judge refused to grant a preliminary injunction that would have shut down streaming television service Aereo due to a copyright infringement suit, and the company now appears to be readying to grow its customer base. One of Aereo's backers, Barry Diller, told Bloomberg TV that the company plans to expand across the United States, and anticipates offering its service in most major US markets by the end of 2013 (it currently is available only in New York City)....
Web & Social
Judge refuses to grant injunction against Aereo online TV service (update)
Streaming television service Aereo has been under legal fire from Comcast, Fox, CBS, and several other television providers due to allegations of copyright infringement. The company won't have to shut down its services in the meantime, however: according to Reuters, a judge in New York has refused to grant a preliminary injunction against the company. New York District Judge Alison Nathan reportedly felt that the broadcasters had demonstrated the streaming service could cause them...
Aereo defends itself in court over copyright infringement allegations
Controversial TV streaming startup Aereo is in court this week after being sued by broadcasters including Comcast, Fox, CBS, and others. The plaintiffs claim that Aereo, which "captures" broadcast TV transmissions and transmits them to subscribers with proprietary antennas, doesn't have the right to redistribute their content. However, the Wall Street Journal reports that Aereo's lawyers are arguing the startup is operating within the boundaries of the same laws that permit viewing recorded...
Barry Diller reflects on Aereo, the internet, and a cable industry that refuses to innovate
Lately the name Barry Diller has been closely tied to Aereo, the embattled streaming service (still in beta) that utilizes antennas to beam out over-the-air television channels to its customers. That's no surprise considering how much Diller has invested in the startup, but Aereo represents just the latest project for a man who's legacy includes launching the Fox network and pioneering the "Movie of the Week" TV concept. New York Magazine interviewed the outspoken executive as part of its...
Aereo under fire: why NBC, ABC, CBS, and Fox want to shut down the internet TV service
Aereo, the service that captures free over-the-air TV broadcasts and streams them online for $12 a month, has come under fire from just about every major TV content provider, from local and national networks to the National Association of Broadcasters. This Wednesday, several of them filed statements seeking a preliminary injunction that would stop Aereo from operating while it deals with the suits against it. So what arguments are NBCUniversal, CBS, Fox, a local ABC affiliate, and others...
NBCUniversal exec condemns Aereo's live TV streaming service, worries cable companies could copy it
We knew content providers were dead set against letting Aereo's web-based live TV streaming service see the light of day after they collectively filed suit against the company back in March. Comments raised in a federal court today only reinforce that volatile opposition, with several high-level network executives painting a doomsday scenario for the cable industry should Aereo be allowed to proceed with its plans. The statements came as part of an effort to obtain a preliminary injunction...
Aereo backer Barry Diller defends online video broadcasting to Senate
IAC chairman Barry Diller has argued for the rights of new online broadcasting companies at a gathering of the Senate Commerce Committee. Diller, who previously headed Fox, Paramount, and USA Broadcasting, is currently financing Aereo, a New York startup that has run into controversy over its streaming video service that captures and retransmits broadcast signals via a proprietary antenna. Diller is worried about established companies stifling competition in the online arena and wants...
Aereo hands-on: live TV in your browser, for $12 a month
Aereo's premise is a clever one: for $12 / month, it streams over-the-air broadcast channels to almost any device with an HTML5-supporting browser — only iOS devices and Roku are supported now, but the company promises near-universal support is coming. It's designed to be a complement to Hulu or Netflix, except in this case it's actually streaming live TV from NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS, and others. The service went live today in New York City as a first trial for the company, even while it's in...
HD & Home
Aereo countersues ABC, NBC, CBS, and other networks, seeks judgment that it doesn't infringe copyrights
Aereo, which seeks to provide streaming versions of over-the-air broadcast networks to paying subscribers on iPads and other devices, hasn't even launched yet — but it's already entrenching for what could be a protracted legal battle with the very content providers it hopes to carry. Responding to a suit filed by ABC, NBC, CBS, and other major networks several days ago, Aereo roundly denies allegations that it's business model is in violation of copyright laws: "Consumers use the Aereo...
Networks file suit against "unauthorized" streaming service Aereo ahead of NYC launch
When we first came across Aereo, the streaming service that lets you bypass cable to watch around 20 local broadcast networks via a proprietary antenna, we noted the possibility of legal issues down the line. Sure enough, ahead of the service's planned March 14th trial launch in New York City, the owners of networks including Fox, Univision, and PBS have filed a suit for injunctive relief and damages. Aereo's argument is that the individual antennas (above) each subscriber will use to capture...
HD & Home
Aereo launching streaming broadcast TV service in NYC on March 14th
A new streaming video service called Aereo is looking to be the latest option for consumers who want to cut the cord and go without cable. Aereo, which will launch a New York City area trial on March 14th, will provide a proprietary remote antenna and DVR service that streams about 20 local broadcast networks, including CBS, NBC, FOX, ABC, PBS, and CW. The service will stream in HD and also allow users to store up to 40 hours of programming at a time. While there's no cable network streaming...
