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Aereo streaming joins forces with Bloomberg TV

The oft-maligned television streaming service is now offering its first cable channel -- with permission from that broadcaster.

Dara Kerr Former senior reporter
Dara Kerr was a senior reporter for CNET covering the on-demand economy and tech culture. She grew up in Colorado, went to school in New York City and can never remember how to pronounce gif.
Dara Kerr
2 min read
Bloomberg TV partners with Aereo streaming service. Screenshot by Dara Kerr/CNET

Despite major TV networks claiming Aereo's illegitimacy, the streaming service now has an official cable TV partner: Bloomberg.

Aereo struck a deal with Bloomberg TV today to allow streaming news, according to The Wall Street Journal. Reportedly, Aereo will pay Bloomberg TV for its content, but the terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"We believe that our members will see deep value adding in Bloomberg Television as their 'go-to' source for financial news," Aereo founder Chet Kanojia said in a statement, according to the Journal. While Bloomberg TV announced that it was "pleased to have Aereo among our broadcast distribution partners."

Aereo is the Barry Diller-backed Internet video service that currently provides users in New York with live TV. For $12 a month, Aereo will connect subscribers, via the Web, to a tiny antenna that captures over-the-air TV signals and enables the subscribers to watch TV on their PC or smartphone. Aereo doesn't pay a dime to access these shows.

The service has been hit with a number of lawsuits, from nearly every major TV broadcaster in New York, including Walt Disney's ABC, CBS (the parent of CNET), Comcast's NBC Universal, and Telemundo. The network operators claim Aereo could kill the broadcast TV business.

A federal judge earlier this year denied a request by the major TV networks to prevent Aereo from rebroadcasting their programs over the Internet. However, at an appeals court last month, a panel of judges seemed far more skeptical of the service.

The lawsuits against Aereo are still up in the air and the company continues to grow its service. In October, it expanded its streaming service to all major Web browsers. And, according to the Journal, Aereo is planning to launch its service in roughly 15 new cities early next year.