The American Cable Association has publicly decried the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that Aereo's SVOD service violates the copyrights of broadcasters.
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Polka (Source: ACA) |
"ACA is concerned because it appears that the Supreme Court's Aereo ruling negatively affects the rights of small cable operators to utilize individual antenna-based delivery of broadcast services," writes ACA president and CEO Matthew M. Polka. "Although the court attempts to preserve the ability of consumers to enjoy accessing a range of time-shifted programming in the convenient manner enabled by Aereo, the decision drew lines that are not clear as to what is acceptable and what is not and, as a result, will likely have a chilling effect on technology innovators.
"Although ACA is disappointed that bold, forward-thinking Aereo lost the direct infringement fight in this case, we are hopeful that the court has not slammed the door entirely on Aereo and other related pioneering technologies that enable online consumers to access freely available content."
But the door does indeed appear to be slammed, at least as far as Aereo is concerned.
The ACA was among a flurry of organizations and individuals releasing statements and sound bytes Wednesday, both pro and con, in the aftermath of the significantly influential Supreme Court ruling.
Appearing on CNBC, high-profile BTIG Research analyst Richard Greenfield pondered the fate of Aereo, noting, "I think the immediate implication for Aereo is, is there going to be a way for them to get compulsory licenses to survive, or do they simply disappear?"
However, Aereo's primary investor, media mogul Barry Diller, seemed to answer that question rather emphatically on the same platform.
He told CNBC, "It's not a big [financial] loss for us, but I do believe blocking this technology is a big loss for consumers, and beyond that I only salute [Aereo founder and CEO] Chet Kanojia and his band of Aereo'lers for fighting the good fight. We did try, but it's over now."
For more:
- read this statement
- read this CNBC story
- see this CNBC video
Related links:
Aereo loses Supreme Court decision, 6-3
Win or lose, Aereo's impact could change OTT market
High Court does what TV Everywhere failed to do: stop Aereo