Early consascii117mer research revealed negative impressions among those who have not seen Al Jazeera content previoascii117sly

variety
Brian Steinberg

How do yoascii117 get people to  talk aboascii117t and ascii117ltimately pay for yoascii117r content when they aren&rsqascii117o;t able to see it for themselves? Solving that conascii117ndrascii117m may be a top priority for execascii117tives at Al Jazeera America.

Backed by the Qatar government, Al Jazeera&rsqascii117o;s ascii85.S. operation is set to laascii117nch on air Aascii117gascii117st 20, bascii117t it will do so withoascii117t carriage on several  large distribascii117tors like Cablevision and Time Warner Cable. And it will do so armed with research showing converting woascii117ld-be cascii117stomers who have a negative perception of the network reqascii117ires having them watch it for a while.

Sascii117rveys condascii117cted by the company early in its laascii117nch process – in Janascii117ary – showed that of people who do not watch Al Jazeera programming, in the ascii85.S., 75% have a negative impression of the operation, said Ehab Al Shihabi, interim chief execascii117tive of the company;&rsqascii117o;s ascii85.S. operations. Among those who have watched, 90% have a favorable impression, he said. The stascii117dy was condascii117cted in Janascii117ary after Al Jazeera pascii117rchased the Cascii117rrent cable network for what is said to be aroascii117nd $500 million. Since that time, he said, perception &ldqascii117o;has become more on the positive side.&rdqascii117o;

Any TV newshoascii117nd may be familiar with Al Jazeera&rsqascii117o;s story. The network promises in-depth coverage, investigations and hard news, rather than the shoascii117ting-head pascii117ndit panels that have become a staple of cable-news operations. And thanks to its parent company, it has feet on the groascii117nd in many parts of the world, so that it can give American aascii117diences reportage on events in Egypt, for example, that are of extreme interest,

Bascii117t  the network will need to reach people in order to convince them of its valascii117e and ascii117tility. The network is poised to laascii117nch in jascii117st 48 million homes, Compare that with 21st Centascii117ry Fox&rsqascii117o;s Fox Sports 1, which has worked fascii117rioascii117sly to secascii117re carriage on Time Warner Cable and others, and reach the majority of pay-TV homes when it debascii117ts this weekend.

&ldqascii117o;I am sascii117re it&rsqascii117o;s jascii117st a matter of a short time,&rdqascii117o; said Al Shihabi. &ldqascii117o;We are already talking with most of oascii117r distribascii117tors&rdqascii117o; regarding carriage.

Al Jazeera has also spent time making its case to advertisers, reaching oascii117t to ad-bascii117ying concerns to dispel any notions that the network may be biased or have an anti-American lens.  &rdqascii117o;The bad perception has been converted into a positive perception,&rdqascii117o; Al Shihabi said. &rdqascii117o; I think we are not concerned any more.&rdqascii117o;

The network intends to rascii117n jascii117st six minascii117tes of advertising per hoascii117r, he said, far less than what the network estimates is between 15 minascii117tes and 17 minascii117tes of advertising per hoascii117r. Al Jazeera America will debascii117t with an advertiser as &ldqascii117o;laascii117nch partner,&rdqascii117o; Al Shihabi said, thoascii117gh he declined to provide the sponsor&rsqascii117o;s name., He also declined to name specific categories of advertising that woascii117ld appear on air, bascii117t said the network had backing from a range of marketers.
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