Online TV provider FilmOn faces an uncertain future after a federal court in Washington DC granted a preliminary injunction brought by US broadcasters.
ABC, NBC and Fox Television Stations argued that FilmOn X is “violating their exclusive right to public performance of their copyrighted works, which include local programs and some of the country’s most popular evening television shows”.
However, in an interview with Deadline.com FilmOn’s CEO Alki David said the service would continue without the networks. It had already taken a month’s break from streaming in May.
In a statement, broadcaster Fox said, “We are pleased, but not surprised, that the court recognised that the commercial retransmission of our broadcast signal without permission or compensation is a clear violation of the law. This decision should finally put the matter to rest, and will hopefully discourage other illegal services from attempting to steal our content.”
FilmOn, which also broadcasts in Europe, boasts 200 live TV channels, plus 500 video and audio podcasts from premium brands.
The Washington ruling also has implications for Barry Diller’s Aereo, which offers a similar IP-delivered service.
