Aereo launches in Cincinnati

Controversial US online TV service Aereo is pressing ahead with its national roll-out by launching its mix of broadband TV and cloud DVR services in Cincinnati tomorrow.

Aereo said the launch in Greater Cincinnati includes the 24-county area across Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana and claims it can reach a total of 2.1 million customers in that market.

The New York-based service allows subscribers in 10 US cities to watch TV channels on mobile devices using a personal antenna but does not pay licence fees to broadcasters, unlike pay TV operators like Cablevision and Comcast.

The launch comes a week after Aereo raised US$34m in new investment to accelerate its national rollout.

It also comes in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s decision last week to hear an appeal of broadcasters that are seeking to reverse a lower court’s ruling that denied their injunction request against Aereo.

Aereo has already launched service in Boston, Atlanta, Miami, Salt Lake City, Houston, Dallas, Detroit, Denver and Baltimore. Its Chicago launch has been delayed due to issues with its beta site. The company is set to announce expansion in more US cities later this month.