Bankruptcy Filing for Aereo

ADVERTISEMENT

NEW YORK: After losing its Supreme Court battle last June, the video streaming service Aereo has filed for Chapter 11 reorganization proceedings.

Aereo had created a cloud-based system that allowed subscribers to record and watch live television over the Internet. The U.S. broadcast networks took issue with the service, with their legal action eventually reaching the Supreme Court. Last June, the Supreme Court ruled that Aereo was infringing on broadcasters' copyrights via its cloud-based DVR and it should pay retransmission fees for the rights to carry that content.

"The U.S. Supreme Court decision effectively changed the laws that had governed Aereo’s technology, creating regulatory and legal uncertainty," Aereo chief Chet Kanojia said in statement on the company's website. "And while our team has focused its energies on exploring every path forward available to us, without that clarity, the challenges have proven too difficult to overcome."

He continued, "Chapter 11 will permit Aereo to maximize the value of its business and assets without the extensive cost and distraction of defending drawn out litigation in several courts."