The most interesting aspect of the Supreme Court’s decision on the Aereo streaming service was not the legality of the platform, or whether it was a game-changing technology, but rather the company’s business model.

How did Aereo work?

For a base subscription fee of $8 a month, customers could lease a small antenna linked to a cloud DVR service, and access free broadcast TV from an array of electronic devices. The Court ruled Aereo violated copyrights on programming, regardless of the technical setup.

As we looked at it, the issue wasn’t whether the company had found a legal way to upend cable TV, but had they found what people were willing to watch, and pay for.

What does the audience want from a streaming service?

They want 1) Lots of content choice 2) a deep catalogue of content in a variety of categories 3) availability on all devices 4) good quality, and 5) easy to use apps.

One analyst said about Aereo that they offered very little in the way of content, had few choices, marginal video quality, they didn’t reach all devices, and had buggy DVR software. In other words, it appears the plan may have been wrong, or at a minimum they didn’t execute fully.

The failure of Aereo’s model says nothing about the growing market for streaming online video programs. It’s exploding.

A June report entitled U.S. Digital Video Benchmark finds that in the first quarter of this year, online video consumption increased 57% from 2013, setting the first of two new records. The other one? Overall online video starts registered a 43% year-over-year increase, clocking in more than 35 billion viewings.

If streaming video is booming, what can Christian broadcasters learn from Aereo’s failure as they consider their own streaming media business models.

From a high level view, those who track my blog know that we promote a model for Christian Internet broadcasting that includes free distribution for creators and free viewing and listening for the audience.

[See: Free online distribution for Christian video content creators, and Yes, streaming video syndication of the gospel can be free]

Five lessons for Christian broadcasters

1. You can still grab signals from the airwaves and distribute them online. Just do it with content-owner permission.
2. Don’t charge creators for adding their content to your platform. Give the content away to your audience. There are other ways to monetize your platform, e.g. advertising, content sales, sponsorships, integrated marketing, donations, etc.
3. Since smartphones and tablets are registering off-the-chart expansion rates, they’re also becoming more relevant to online video consumption: broadcasters need to offer the gospel in a variety of multiple platform options.
4. Since online video content is growing at an unprecedented rate as a primary entertainment source, we can safely assume that the need (if not the desire) for spiritual content hasn’t gone away.
5. Christian broadcasters have a responsibility to find a model that will enable them to satisfy spiritual inquiry in the online world by creatively integrating technology and content into these fast-growing streaming mediums.

The real discussion

The real discussion should be focused on the opportunities to leverage online video and audio for the gospel, what type of content will keep people tuned-in so the Spirit can go to work, how and where people are willing to experience content, what quality will be acceptable, and a business model that lowers barriers.

If there is a barrier to broadcasting the gospel online, it should be met head on and removed, if possible.