The moves comes nearly 2 years after the channel launched in August 2013 and faced an uphill battle in two fronts, both battles of which are now lost: firstly, getting the American public to tune to your tv channel and, secondly, getting pay tv providers to carry the channel.
The channel launched with much fanfare and poached talent from other news channels. These included Ali Velshi who previously anchored CNNi's World Business Today, which is now anchored by Maggy Lake.
Al Jazeera America replaced Al Gore's Current TV (which was carried by what was then called TopTV here in SA) which too struggled in the ratings, though things never got better.
Being backed by financially strong investors, the network launched with over twenty bureaus across the United States and backed by Al Jazeera's muscle for international news. However, when ratings failed to improve, the network shut most of its bureaux and cut back a lot of its live content.
To replace this cut content, the channel simulcast Al Jazeera English, which is seen around the world including here in SA. This led to Al Jazeera English changing its on screen look and feel to that of the American channel so that the transition between the networks can be seamless.
Now, the channel goes 'online only' as the organisation invests more in its online platforms, which benefit online news consumers around the world.
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