Al Jazeera 500 million Qatari riyals (US$137 million) from the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa. By securing its funding through loans or grants rather than direct government subsidies, the channel seeks to maintain independent editorial policy. The channel began broadcasting in late 1996, with many staff joining from the BBC World Service's Saudi-co-owned Arabic-language TV station, which had shut down on 1 April 1996 after two years of operation because of censorship demands by the Saudi Arabian government. The Al Jazeera logo is a decorative representation of the network's name written using Arabic calligraphy. It was selected by the station's
Al Jazeera geoblocked was made available to viewers in the United States again in September, 2016. Online. Al Jazeera English can be viewed over the Internet from their official website. The low-resolution version is available free of charge to users of computers and video streaming boxes, and the high-resolution version is available under subscription fees through partner sites. Al Jazeera's English division has also partnered with Livestation for Internet-based broadcasting. This enables Al Jazeera English and Al Jazeera live to be watched worldwide. Al Jazeera Media Network's web-based service is accessible subscription-free throughout the world, at a variety of websites. The station