Sultan sent me this: "It's fascinating observing the rapprochement between Qatar and Saudi Arabia. One way of measuring if it is really taking off is when you see Saudi owned or influenced firms (Kingdom Holding, Bin Laden Group, Abdul Latif Jameel Group etc.) advertise on the channel. About ten years ago the Saudis made it clear than none of their firms, or anyone wishing to do business in Saudi should pay for ads on Al Jazeera due to what some saw as an on air anti Saudi bias. Despite it being the most popular channel most of these firms acquiesced since Saudi is the biggest market in the region (Thai airlines advertises on Al Jazeera a lot, but Saudis are banned from visiting Thailand).
When you see Saudi owned & influenced firms paying for ads on Al Jazeera, you can be sure that the Qatari-Saudi rapprochement is cemented."
PS I can confirm that Aljazeera leaders have told me over the years that Saudi government threatened all Western companies against doing business with Aljazeera.
