This Dec. 20, 2012 file photo shows Chet Kanojia, founder and CEO of Aereo, Inc., holding a tablet displaying his company's technology, in New York. The Supreme Court has ruled that a startup Internet company has to pay broadcasters when it takes television programs from the airwaves and allows subscribers to watch them on smartphones and other portable devices. The justices said Wednesday by a 6-3 vote that Aereo Inc. is violating the broadcasters' copyrights by taking the signals for free. The ruling preserves the ability of the television networks to collect huge fees from cable and satellite systems that transmit their programming.(Photo: Bebeto Matthews, AP)
Streaming service Aereo has shut down in the wake of its Supreme Court loss earlier this week.
Calling the court's reversal Wednesday of an earlier lower court decision in favor of Aereo "a massive setback," CEO Chet Kanojia said the company is ceasing operations.
"Our case has been returned to the lower Court. We have decided to pause our operations temporarily as we consult with the court and map out our next steps. You will be able to access your cloud-based antenna and DVR only until 11:30 a.m. ET today," he said in an email to subscribers Saturday morning. "All of our users will be refunded their last paid month. If you have questions about your account, please email support@aereo.com or tweet us @AereoSupport."
Kanojia said that Aereo's argument that consumers have the right to watch over-the-air TV broadcasts on the Net rather than via a home antenna remains viable. "Our journey is far from done," he said, telling supporters to sign up for updates at ProtectMyAntenna.org.
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Launched two years ago, Aereo delivered over-the-air channels via online streaming to computers and tablets for about $8 a month and had brought the service to 11 cities.
"The spectrum that the broadcasters use to transmit over the air programming belongs to the American public and we believe you should have a right to access that live programming whether your antenna sits on the roof of your home, on top of your television or in the cloud," Kanojia said.
But the Supreme Court decided that Aereo "is a cable service like any other. It's not Radio Shack," said Phil Swann, president of TVPredictions.com, "Where consumers might have gained if Aereo won was more options. Local sports and local channels is still a dicey proposition if you don't get pay TV. … For a lot of people it's not an option or it's more complicated than it need to be."
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