Read the original story on Ars Technica
Aereo, the Internet-based TV streaming company, will take its controversial service all the way to the Supreme Court. Aereo’s business model works by renting tiny antenna’s to users, which pick up over-the-air TV signals in HD and transmit them to any device on which the user has installed Aereo. Aereo’s software then records the shows, allowing you to DVR and stream your shows from anywhere. The problem is that judges have continuously ruled that Aereo is in violation of the 1976 copyright act, which prescribes the types of transmissions that companies must pay license fees on; Aereo thinks that they are not required to pay these fees, however, because of the use of the word “transmission” in the act. The legal back-and-forth means that Aereo has been temporarily suspended in both Denver and Salt Lake City, which fall under the current rulings’ jurisdiction. Because Aereo has appealed, the case will continue up the ladder to the Supreme Court. It’s an interesting case to keep an eye on, particularly because it has vast implications for Cord Cutters and alternative forms of Internet-based TV.
