Al Jazeera English - Launch and Reach

Launch and Reach

The channel was launched on Wednesday, 15 November 2006 at 12:00 GMT (19:00 WIB). It had aimed to begin global broadcasting in June 2006 but had to postpone its launch because its HDTV technology was not ready. The channel was due to be called Al Jazeera International, but the name was changed nine months before the launch because "one of the Qatar-based channel's backers decided that the broadcaster already had an international scope with its original Arabic outlet."

The channel had expected to reach around 40 million households, but it far exceeded that launch target, reaching 80 million homes. As of 2009, Al Jazeera's English-language service can be viewed in every major European market and is available to 130 million homes in over 100 countries via cable and satellite, according to Molly Conroy, a spokeswoman for the network in Washington.

The channel is noted for its poor penetration in the American market, where it is carried by only one satellite service and a small number of cable networks. Al Jazeera English has begun a campaign to enter the North American market, including a dedicated website. It became available to some cable subscribers in New York in August 2011, having previously been available as an option for some viewers in Washington DC, Ohio and Los Angeles. It is readily available on most major Canadian television providers including Rogers and Bell TV after the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission approved the channel for distribution in Canada on 26 November 2009.

Al Jazeera English and Iran's state-run Press TV were the only international English-language television broadcasters with journalists reporting from inside both Gaza and Israel during the 2008–2009 Israel-Gaza conflict. Foreign press access to Gaza has been limited via either Egypt or Israel. However, Al Jazeera's reporters Ayman Mohyeldin and Sherine Tadros were already inside Gaza when the conflict began and the network's coverage was often compared to CNN's initial coverage from inside Baghdad in the early days of the 1991 Gulf War.

The channel may also be viewed online. It recommends online viewing either via Livestation, a free software (live, high quality), at its own website (live, low quality), or at its channel on YouTube. Although Al Jazeera English is produced in High Definition (HD), the output is converted to 14:9 SD similar to BBC World. Programs are shown on the Al Jazeera English YouTube channel in their original 16:9 format.