Do it live! Chromecast Aereo app streams local TV to cord cutters

Update: Aereo has officially launched as the first Google Chromecast live TV app, albeit one with local channels in limited parts of the country.

The Chromecast-compatible Aereo app is now available in the Google Play Store for Android phones and tablets. Computers with Chrome can also push Aereo's streaming picture to their TVs.

Of course, we'll see how long this or any Aereo streaming method lasts. The Supreme Court noted that the company's entire business is "solely based on circumventing." A ruling on its legality may come this month.

Original story below...

There's about to be more to Google Chromecast than stale video on-demand content, as Aereo intends to bring live TV to the media streaming dongle next month.

The controversial cloud-based antenna company plans to update its app so that Aereo subscribers can stream local over-the-air live TV to big-screen televisions equipped with the dongle.

The Android version of the app is confirmed to become "Google Cast Ready" on May 29. No iOS version has been announced, even though both Chromecast and Aereo support the platform.

A "cast" icon will appear within the Aereo app, similar to the button that has popped up in other Chromecast compatible apps.

Live TV on the cheap

Aereo's forthcoming Chromecast support makes it one of the cheapest ways to use the local TV streaming service on a normal television.

Both Apple TV and Roku 3 have free Aereo apps, but these set-top boxes are almost triple the price of the $35 Chromecast.

Even the new Roku Streaming Stick costs more than Google's similarly sized dongle.

Of course, Aereo's local live TV streaming service remains out of reach for most folks. Its serves 11 cities, from Boston and New York to as far west as Austin, with the intention of expanding to more in 2014.

Everyone else will just have to buy and mount an old-fashioned HD Antenna to capture local news, sports and network TV programs.

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