Aereo is at SXSW this week to celebrate the launch of its remote DVR service in Austin, Texas. But as one new port opens, another two closed.
In the wake of legal troubles in Utah, Aereo on Saturday was forced to shutter service in Denver, Colo., and Salt Lake City, Utah. Customers were notified that their connection would end Saturday at 10 a.m.; users in those markets will be issued a refund, according to Engadget.
The trouble began last month, when the U.S. District Court of Utah ruled in favor of Fox Broadcasting's copyright infringement claims, effectively stopping Aereo from expanding its local program.
Then, a panel of federal court judges on Friday denied Aereo's request to stay the injunction, arguing that "Aereo has not made a strong showing that it is likely to succeed on the merits of its appeal."
Aereo took to Twitter last week to express its unhappiness.
We're very disappointed that the District Court in UT chose to take a different path than every other Court that reviewed our tech
— Aereo (@Aereo) March 8, 2014"This means for the time being, we'll have to cease providing services to our valued customers in SLC & Denver markets at 10AM Saturday," the official account wrote. "We're unwavering in our believe that our technology falls squarely [within] the law & we look forward to continuing to serve our consumers.
"This is an ongoing battle, but together we can protect innovation, progress & consumer choice," the company continued.
The battle will, in fact, continue all the way to the Supreme Court, where the case will be heard on April 22.
Aereo has been battling broadcasters since 2012, when it was sued for rebroadcasting TV without permission by Twentieth Century Fox, Fox Television, Univision, PBS, and two local New York stations. A second suit was filed by ABC, Disney, CBC, NBCUniversal, Universal Network Television, and Telemundo.
The antenna-to-satellite provider eventually won on an appeal, but the fight didn't end.
"While the law is clear and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and two different federal courts have ruled in favor of Aereo, broadcasters appear determined to keep litigating the same issues against Aereo in every jurisdiction that we enter," CEO Chet Kanojia said in December.
For more, see PCMag's review of Aereo. Also check out Aereo: Everything You Need to Know, and 5 Reasons Aereo Isn't a Cord Cutter's Dream.
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