TV broadcasters are dragging Aereo to the U.S. Supreme Court over infringement of copyright laws.
Based in New York, Aereo allows its subscribers to view live as well as time-shifted streams of over-the-air television shows on an Internet-connected device. Aereo service was launched in February 2012 and immediately after its launch, the company was sued by a consortium of major broadcasters, including CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox for copyright infringement.
However, in April this year, a federal appeals court upheld a lower court's ruling that that Aereo's streams to subscribers were not "public performances" and did not constitute copyright infringement. However, in October this year, lawyers representing the TV broadcasters sent a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the case.
Usually, a business that gets a total win on appeal, as Aereo did, will not want the Supreme Court to take the case. However, Aereo issued a statement on Thusday, December 12, arguing just the opposite. The company states that as the decision at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals were in favor of the company, the U.S. Supreme Court should accept the case.
"We have decided to not oppose the broadcasters' petition for certiorari before the United States Supreme Court. While the law is clear and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and two different federal courts have ruled in favor of Aereo, broadcasters appear determined to keep litigating the same issues against Aereo in every jurisdiction that we enter. We want this resolved on the merits rather than through a wasteful war of attrition," says Chet Kanojia, founder and CEO of the company.
Aereo's technology enables customers to view live broadcast content and even record live broadcasts for the purpose of viewing it later. Aereo can be used on Windows, Mac and Linux PCs. The service can also be used on Android devices, as well as iOS devices such as the iPhone, iPad, and more via AirPlay.
The service initially started only in New York City but now Aereo can also be used in Boston, Atlanta, Miami, Salt Lake City, Houston and Dallas.
