U.S. Supreme Court Rules Aereo Violates Broadcaster Copyrights : Reports

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Aereo Inc. is violating the copyrights of broadcasters by selling live programming over the Internet, according to media reports.

The reports indicated that the 6-3 ruling is a triumph for broadcast companies, including Walt Disney Co. (DIS)'s ABC, 21st Century Fox Inc., Comcast Corp. (CMCSA, CMCSK)'s NBCUniversal and CBS Corp. (CBS-A, CBS) They said Aereo was threatening the underpinnings of the industry by selling programming online without paying licensing fees.

Aereo sought to give consumers a new way to watch broadcast TV without buying the packages offered by cable and satellite companies. Customers in 11 cities have been able to watch live and recorded broadcast programs for as little as $8 a month.

The reports said that Aereo contended that a ruling against the company would imperil cloud computing, the business of storing videos and other content for customers on remote servers. The majority today said the ruling was a limited one that wouldn't affect cloud computing.