More than 4.5 million Boston-area consumers will have access to Aereo's antenna technology to watch live television online starting May 15.
Aereo Expands Outside NYC, Adding Boston
Aereo Inc. today announced plans to launch its online television streaming service in the Boston metropolitan area.
Beginning May 15, consumers who have pre-registered with Aereo will receive a special invitation to join. After May 30, Aereo will make membership available to all eligible consumers across the Boston DMA, which includes more than 4.5 million consumers in 16 counties in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. Boston is the second city to launch as part of Aereo’s expansion announced in January. The service premiered in New York.
“Aereo is simply the easiest, most convenient way for consumers to access broadcast television online using an antenna,” said Aereo CEO-Founder Chet Kanojia. “Consumers deserve more choice and flexibility in how they experience television and Aereo provides them a high-quality, rationally-priced alternative. This is an exciting step forward for the company. Today’s announcement is even more meaningful and special for our more than 60 employees who call the Boston area home, including me. I’m proud of our team and what we’ve accomplished in such a short period of time.”
In Boston, there are 28 over-the-air broadcast channels accessible through Aereo’s antenna/DVR technology, including major networks such as WGBH (PBS), WBZ (CBS), WCVB (ABC), WHDH (NBC), WLVI (CW) and WFXT (Fox); special interest channels such as The Country Network, PBS Kids, Ion and Qubo; and Spanish-language broadcast channels such as Univision and Telemundo. In addition, consumers can also add Bloomberg Television, for a total of 29 channels.
Aereo is supported on iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Chrome, Internet Explorer 9, Firefox, Safari, Opera, AppleTV (via airplay) and Roku devices.
Aereo membership is available to consumers residing in the following counties in Massachusetts: Barnstable, Dukes, Essex, Middlesex, Nantucket, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk, and Worcester; in New Hampshire’s Belknap, Cheshire, Hillsborough, Merrimack, Rockingham and Strafford counties; and in Vermont’s Windham County.
BRAND CONNECTIONS
Aereo has offices in Long Island City (Queens), Downtown Brooklyn and in Boston’s Innovation District.
Comments (10)
John Murray says:
April 23, 2013 at 11:37 am
I’m sure the local TV journalists who literally worked around the clock last week will be delighted to learn that their product will be re-sold by Aereo with nary a cent going to them. The two judges on the NY Second-Circuit Court should be disbarred for malpractice.
alicia farmer says:
April 23, 2013 at 2:12 pm
Gosh – I thought station revenue was primarily based on ratings. Silly me.
Joel Ordesky says:
April 23, 2013 at 4:07 pm
The local stations’ primary responsibility is to provide free over-the-air TV in their DMA to viewers already authorized to view and enjoy the programming. Does it really make a difference where your antenna is located? If Kanojia was putting his little antennas in your home is it still stealing?
Tony Alexander says:
April 23, 2013 at 3:57 pm
Yes, I’m also confused. I thought this was “free” TV and I thought advertising was the support, so if that’s true then wouldn’t the broadcaster want more eyeballs on their content regardless of where they came from? Are you saying that retransmission fees are so high now that advertising is unimportant? This sounds exactly like the argument many years ago about cable putting “us” out of business. Apparently now, cable is a big and wealthy friend to broadcasting…but wait! I pay a cable bill so it must be that some of the money that I pay for my cable service is going to broadcasting, which I thought was free.
M Corte says:
April 23, 2013 at 4:15 pm
From what I can tell this service is just paying for renting an antenna and viewing the local stations online. Unlike cable companies which charge an OUTRAGEOUS amount for a locals only package ranging from $15-30. One cable company even has a local channel surcharge of $1.70 a month now in addition to paying for a $30 broadcast basic lineup consisting of primarily local channels and some shopping channels. Unless Aereo is price gouging consumers for local channels, I don’t see a problem with this service.
Manuel Morales says:
April 23, 2013 at 5:13 pm
The difference would be that Aereo is not compensating Broadcasters whereas in the Cable “Lifeline” package the Broadcasters are compensated by the Cable Cos.
Gene Johnson says:
April 23, 2013 at 4:29 pm
Aero is not a not-for-profit operation. It is a for-profit business enterprise, that is using the broadcast signals, and only the broadcast signals, to sell it’s alternate delivery method, which includes the transmission of the re-purposed broadcast signals through wires that use and cross public rights-of-way (i.e., the wired internet). If Aero can re-purpose and re-package the broadcast signals for its own profit, without compensating the broadcasters for use of their intellectual property (i.e., their programming), then what is the purpose of the copyright laws? For those who do not think what Aero is doing is improper, if they create any sort of intellectual property are they willing to give it away free so someone else can make a profit? Are they willing to provide whatever professional service might be their occupation for free so someone else can make a profit? If you still think what Aero is doing is OK, please explain. Broadcasters are not transmitting their signals to the public so that a third-party business (and Aero is a business) can take those signals and make a profit selling them without the content creator’s permission. It doesn’t matter how much Aero may be charging, and whether it is more or less reasonable that what a cable company or satellite provider is charging.
Joel Ordesky says:
April 23, 2013 at 5:17 pm
If I pay a service to install and maintain an antenna, wiring and DVR in my home, it’s not a violation of anyone’s copyright, regardless of how much money the service charges and makes. If they want to sell subscriptions and charge for “Free TV” that’s their business, because they are installing and maintaining the service in my home. So, the question really is where can they install the antenna and receiver and still not be violating someone’s copyright. The Cablevision court case determined that the DVR could be at their facility and not in my home, and still not violate a copyright. Aereo has taken great care to ensure that only people with the broadcasters’ DMA who are ALREADY AUTHORIZED TO VIEW THE COPYRIGHTED PROGRAMMING are able to rent their antenna/DVR. How can I steal something that I already have the right to view without payment? The fact is that a broadcaster’s free signal travels through a lot of third party “money-making” equipment and services before it reaches my eyeballs. The antenna, distribution amplifier, cabling, DVR, VCR, frame buffers, TV electronics, LCD panels all made for the purpose of transporting a copyrighted signal that I am entitled to view. Is it the distance from the antenna that bothers you, or the fact that I’m able to watch the programming free of charge? I happen to use Aereo for the DVR only, since it’s easier to just tune the channel with my built-in receiver and watch it free as always. I could have the same capability and pay TIVO $13/month for the DVR and channel guide, but I chose Aereo. By the way, TIVO doesn’t pay retransmission fees to the broadcasters, either..
none none says:
April 23, 2013 at 5:26 pm
If Aereo offered the service for free, that would one thing, but WHY should they make money on content they do not pay for?
Heidi Persson says:
April 23, 2013 at 8:18 pm
Has Aereo ever explained why it’s using DMA boundaries to define its service areas? TV signal coverage areas are not identical to DMA boundaries. If Aereo is not subject to the same rules as cable/satellite, why would DMA boundaries matter?