Qatar-based cable news channel Al Jazeera has reportedly taken over U.S.-based news and opinion channel Current TV, which was co-founded by former U.S. vice president Al Gore and Joel Hyatt. The deal is estimated to be $500 million. It will give Al Jazeera access to nearly 60 million viewers.

"We are proud and pleased that Al Jazeera, the award- winning international news organization, has bought Current TV," Gore and Hyatt said in a statement.  

Reports say Al Jazeera will replace existing shows with its programming.

"Current Media was built based on a few key goals: To give voice to those who are not typically heard; to speak truth to power; to provide independent and diverse points of view; and to tell the stories that no one else is telling," the co-founders said. "Al Jazeera, like Current, believes that facts and truth lead to a better understanding of the world around us."

The deal brings Al Jazeera into closer competition with American news channels like CNN, MSNBC and Fox. The channel is owned by the government of Qatar and is expected to gradually transform Current TV into a network called Al-Jazeera America.

Reports suggest some pay-TV systems may prefer not to carry Current TV following this development. For instance, Time Warner Cable Inc. (TWC), the second-biggest U.S. cable company, said it would stop carrying Current TV with the ownership change.