By Patrick Neighly, CommsDay International

US video operators may use cloud storage techniques in lieu of DVRs to provide time-shift viewing services. That’s the upshot of a Supreme Court refusal to hear a legal challenge to Cablevision Systems’ proposed VOD service, which sparked Hollywood outrage by replacing set-top boxes with centralized remote servers housed at its own facilities.

Several copyright holders including the four broadcast networks sued to stop the plan, arguing the service would violate federal law and serve as an unlicensed VOD platform. Cablevision spun the offering as a way to extend DVR functionality while cutting costs. The decision to uphold a lower court appeal could have significant impact on the set-top box market as rival operators are almost certain to pursue their own cloud DVR services.

“This is a tremendous victory, and it opens up the possibility of offering a DVR experience to all of our digital cable customers,” Cablevision COO Tom Rutledge said in a statement. “This landmark case gives the cable industry, and Cablevision in particular, the opportunity to do something that our satellite competitors cannot do. We expect to begin deploying the first application of this new technology, the ability to pause live television when the phone rings, as a value-added benefit to our customers later this summer.”

This article was first published in CommsDay International