Free for a Fee

Streaming video company FilmOn lost a major court battle late last week. Since that event, though, reactions and comments haven’t really focused on FilmOn, a company that has gone through multiple iterations and legal setbacks. Rather, the focus has been on what it means for Aereo—which, so far, is the only TV-over-Internet company that seems like it has a chance of pushing through legal attacks brought by broadcasters.Aereo’s business involves setting up vast arrays of tiny antennas, which capture over-the-air television and send it to its users over the Internet. By giving each customer their own antenna, Aereo makes clear that the capturing and saving of the television content is done at the direction of its users. Aereo’s business model has been ruled legal by a federal judge and the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit.