You might not be familiar with a company named Aereo – it is a New York City based technology company, launched in February 2012 and back by Barry Diller. Aereo allows subscribers to view live TV as well as time-shift programs you can store on a “DVR Cloud.” Once in the cloud you can watch them on your PC and soon your Android tablet or smartphone.
It really is a simple process. TV signals are broadcast over the airwaves, captured by your antenna that is in the cloud and connected to DVRs and superfast internet connections. Once captured in the cloud you can watch your shows on any compatible device and that includes smartphones, tablets, or computer. Android devices were not included as a “compatible,” but all of that should change in September according to Aereo founder and CEO Chet Kanojia when they finally release their Android App.
In an exclusive interview with International Business Times (IBT), Mr. Kanojia said he had hoped to roll out the Android app last summer, which has a larger market share than Apple, which already has an Aereo app, but it just did not happen. He said it will be sometime in September, but would not give an exact date. The service has expanded rapidly over the past year where it went from New York City, Boston, Atlanta, and Utah to nearly two dozen cities east of Denver.
Apparently, it is also very profitable only charging $8 -$12 per month. Mr. Kanojia, speaking at a startup entrepreneur event in Manhattan said:
One million subscribers would be “fabulous,” and 5 million would be “extremely fabulous.” Ten million? Oh my god, what will I do now?” — because, he said, a few hundred thousand registered users is all his company needs to turn a profit.
When you subscribe to Aereo, you can watch:
Major Networks
CBS, NBC, FOX, ABC, CW, and PBS
Syndicated Programs and Movies
Movies!, ION, Cozi TV, MyNetworkTV, ThisTV, AntennaTV, and Bounce TV
Lifestyle & Local Interest
ION Life, Livewell, NYC Life, NYC Gov, and CUNY TV
Children’s Programming
PBS Kids & Qubo
Home Shopping
HSN & HSN2
Spanish Language – Six channels included
Asian Languages – Four channels included
Sounds like a good deal, especially being able to time-shift your programming. Does Aereo sound like a service you would be interested in giving a try.