Aereo dries up its stream

THE ONLINE-STREAMING service Aereo went dark Saturday, just days after the Supreme Court ruled that the company violates copyright law.

“We have decided to pause our operations temporarily as we consult with the court and map out our next steps,” Aereo’s Chief Executive Officer Chet Kanojia wrote in a letter to customers Saturday.

The nation’s highest court dealt a major blow to the Barry Diller-backed technology company Wednesday, ruling ng that the service operates like a cable TV company and needs to pay broadcasters licensing fees for r streaming TV stations to customers’ mobile devices.

Aereo set up antennas s across the U.S. to pick up broadcast channels like CBS and ABC and stream them to computers, smartphones, tablets and other gadgets for $8 a month.

“The spectrum that the broadcasters use to transmit over the air programming belo longs to the American pu public and we believe yo you should have the ri right to access that live pr programming whether yo your antenna sits on th the roof of your home, on top of your television or in the cloud,” Kanojia wrote.

New York’s U.S. District Court now has to issue a preliminary injunction to stop the service.