Commentary

Aereo Asks 10th Circuit To Lift Injunction, Says DVR Service Legal

Aereo might have been shot down by the Supreme Court, but the startup isn't yet ready to close up shop.

Not only is Aereo trying to convince regulators and the courts that it's now a "cable system" -- and therefore entitled to a compulsory license -- but the company is also arguing that it should be allowed to continue offering its DVR service.

Aereo points out that the recent Supreme Court ruling only addressed the company's real-time streaming service, which streamed over-the-air programs to users' smartphones and tablets as the shows were broadcast. The Supreme Court said that those streams were public performances, which infringed broadcasters' copyrights.

But the court didn't rule on Aereo's cloud service, which the company says merely enables “time-shifted playback of recordings by the user.” In fact, the Supreme Court specifically noted that it wasn't taking a position on the legality of Aereo's DVR service.

Aereo says in its newest papers that its DVR service is merely a “cloud-based storage service” that lets people play back shows they previously uploaded to Aereo's servers. “Each Aereo subscriber may only play back programs he himself previously recorded and stored,” the company says.

Aereo also says in its papers that it believes it is now a “cable system” and entitled to a mandatory license to transmit programs.

Aereo filed its papers this week in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, in hopes of convincing that court to lift an injunction issued by a trial judge in February. The broadcasters are expected to file their papers by Aug. 18.

1 comment about "Aereo Asks 10th Circuit To Lift Injunction, Says DVR Service Legal ".
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  1. Pete Austin from Fresh Relevance, July 24, 2014 at 9:06 a.m.

    Related - https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20140717/11093427919/copyright-office-tells-aereo-that-it-probably-doesnt-qualify-as-cable-service-no-matter-what-supreme-court-says.shtml

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