Aereo has an interesting business model. It captures over-the-air TV signals using antennas and streams that content via the Internet to the iPhone, iPad and soon Android devices. Customers can also save programs to a cloud-based DVR service to watch later. The company announced this week that it was preparing an Android version that would launch on October 22nd.
Android users with a tablet or phone running Android 4.2 or higher will be able to join the public beta in a few weeks. Customers that volunteer to check out the service will be able to watch up to 30 channels of TV content and can record any of the shows available on the service. The service is available in in New York City, Boston, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Miami, Houston and Dallas.
Though it is expanding to Android, Aereo’s future is still very much up on the air. Broadcast networks such as ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC Universal have sued Aereo claiming the service violated copyrights. Aereo has prevailed in most court battles to date, but the company may face its biggest battle yet. According to CNET, Broadcasters have petitioned the US Supreme Court to hear their case. There’s a small chance it will be accepted, but that doesn’t mean the broadcast networks will be ready to give up their fight. These battles over the legality of this streaming service will undoubtedly continue for the foreseeable future.
[Via TechCrunch and CNET]