Viacom, Time Warner settle TV app lawsuit

Viacom, the parent of MTV and Comedy Central, has settled lawsuits with Time Warner Cable (TWC) over whether cable subscribers may watch shows on mobile devices such as Apple's iPad, Reuters reports.

The accord means Viacom programmes such as Jersey Shore, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and South Park will become available over the TWC TV app over the next several weeks.

"All of Viacom's programming will now be available to Time Warner Cable subscribers for in-home viewing via Internet protocol-enabled devices such as iPads," the companies said in a joint statement posted on Viacom's Web site.

According to Tech Crunch, the legal fight erupted last year, after TWC released its iPad app, which lets subscribers stream live shows to tablets inside their homes. While many networks grumbled about the app, Viacom was most vocal in rejecting the app, taking its distribution partner to court over whether it had the right to stream to other devices.

TWC's argument was that the iPad was just another TV in the home, while Viacom argued that the tablet was a new device and required additional rights for distribution.

Cablevision Systems last year launched a similar iPad app - and was also hauled into court by Viacom, before the two parties resolved their differences for undisclosed terms, Multi Channel writes.

In February, TWC extended the in-home live TV streaming service to PCs and Macs, and has released apps for Android devices as well.