Aereo has announced that it will expand its TV-over-internet streaming services to consumers across Utah, a.k.a. The Beehive State, on Aug.19.
The New York-based Aereo allows subscribers to watch free broadcast television content from networks like CBS and Fox on their computers and mobile devices, and even set top boxes like Roku, for a small fee.
The content is stored on what Aereo calls a "cloud-based DVR" and streamed to individual users on demand.
After New York, Boston and Atlanta, Utah will be the fourth region in which Aereo is available. Next up is Chicago on Sept. 13, according to the company.
Cutting the chords
Utah is proving a magnet for new technologies as Aereo plans its arrival following interest from Google Fiber.
Aereo is one of the services helping an entire generation of chord-cutters go without traditional TV subscriptions, and traditional TV companies are not happy about it.
CBS and a coalition of other broadcast and TV companies have taken Aereo to court over rebroadcasting their content without a license, but to no avail.
Aereo's argument is that it's simply giving consumers access to what they should already have access to: broadcast TV that's supposed to be free for all, on devices that are actually relevant to them.
In the ongoing battle, News Corp. even threatened to pull its broadcast signal and go cable-only, which could cause a major paradigm shift in the industry.
Aereo's subscription plans range from $8 a month, allowing users to decide how many hours of online storage they want, with a free month to let new users test the service out.
Utahns who pre-register on Aereo.com will get "priority access," according to Aereo's announcement today.
- Is what Aereo's doing legal? TechRadar went in-depth on Aereo with an expert on broadcast law.
