In decades past, Twin Cities residents got their television fixes via trusty antennas mounted on their rooftops or placed atop TV sets.
Over-the-air TV reception got an overhaul in recent years with digital channels in high definition for those with the right gear, and at no cost.
Now, the rabbit-ear revolution here is about to undergo another significant change.
A service called Aereo will soon save you the hassle of setting up an antenna, instead using one of its own elsewhere in the country and feeding the TV transmissions to you over the Internet for a modest fee.
Aereo, now offering its service in New York City, has announced it will expand to the Twin Cities and 21 other U.S. markets in the spring.
This will give metro-area residents an alternative to sometimes-finicky over-the-air reception, or the basic-cable equivalent from the likes of Comcast.
At $8 a month and up, Aereo is potentially alluring for those who need only a modest selection of channels (including the major networks) with decent video quality and the option to save shows DVR-style for later viewing.
But Aereo will have scant appeal for those who crave a broad selection of channels, including HBO and Showtime, from a cable or satellite-TV provider.
With average monthly pay-TV bills exceeding $75, though, Aereo is positioning itself as a lower-cost alternative for spendthrifts. It is particularly relevant to “cord cutters” who want to ditch their cable or satellite service and watch their shows online and to younger people Aereo calls “cord nevers” who have never had pay-TV service.
Aereo users get 20 hours of DVR capacity for $8 a month or 40 hours for $12 a month. The fee drops to less than $7 a month if paid for a year in advance. Day passes costing $1 provide 24 hours of viewing, three hours of DVR space and 10 days to watch recordings. One continuous hour of viewing is free.
Aereo works on computers, tablets and smartphones as well as on TVs using video-streaming add-on boxes from Apple or Roku. Aereo makes the most sense for those who have broadband Internet access at home or 4G wireless-data access on mobile devices.
Aereo takes an oddball approach to basic-TV service. It describes its antennas as “unbelievably small, so small it fits on the tip of your finger.” This allows it to set up vast numbers of the antennas, with each assigned to a single subscriber.
TV transmissions detected by the antenna are sent to that subscriber over the Internet, making the physical location of the antenna or distance from the user irrelevant. (Aero has been setting up its antennas in New York City’s Brooklyn borough.)
The company has proved controversial.
Aereo, backed by media mogul Barry Diller, has been seen as toxic to traditional broadcasters who hauled it into court on copyright grounds.
A recent federal court ruling tentatively endorsed its legality, prompting its just-announced expansion.
Associated Press reports were used in this story.
