• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, April 6, 2011

Cablevision indicated Wednesday that consumer interest in watching live TV on an iPad is proving to be strong. Since Saturday's debut, there have been 50,000 downloads of the app from the Apple online store, the cable operator said.

Users can watch up to 300 channels live on the devices -- depending on which TV package they have -- along with a slew of VOD offerings. The app also features an advanced navigation option.

The Optimum App for iPad is free to customers. An Internet connection is not necessary in order to use the service. The viewing option is only available in the home, partly due to content rights issues.

Cablevision said its app is the 10th-most-popular free iPad app at the moment.

Company senior vice president Gary Schanman stated: "Our objective was nothing short of delivering the full cable television experience to our customers on an iPad in the home ... He added that the company would continue to "enhance and refine the app."

At least one network, the New York Yankees regional sports network, has protested Cablevision's right to offer its stream on the service.

Time Warner Cable has a more limited TV-on-iPad offering than Cablevision and has received complaints from Discovery, Fox Cable and Viacom and removed their channels.

TWC, which has many more customers than New York-area Cablevision, said last week that it has had over 300,000 downloads of its app.