BBC World Service Television, often abbreviated to WSTV (World Service Television), was the name of two BBC international satellite television channels between 1991 and 1995. It was the BBC's first foray into worldwide television broadcasting. In Europe, it was the successor to BBC TV Europe, which it replaced on 11 March 1991. The service was also launched in Asia as a 24-hour news and information service with minor differences, a precursor to BBC World News, launched on 14 October 1991. Unlike the BBC World Service at the time, it was not funded by the British government with a grant-in-aid. Instead, it was funded either by subscription or by commercial advertising, with advertisements that were inserted locally by the cable or satellite providers. In the years that followed, where not broadcast via a particular local provider, the BBC would insert news headlines, trailers for their own programming, and other updates to fill the gaps, these being known as "break fillers". Availability Europe In Europe, BBC WSTV replaced BBC TV Europe on 11 March 1991 as the BBC's subscription-funded entertainment service. Like BBC TV Europe, it was a mix of BBC1 and BBC2. However, in place of BBC TV Europe's near-continuous direct rebroadcast of BBC1 and schedule pattern timed to UK time (GMT/BST), it had a schedule pattern more synchronised to Central European Time and many of its first-run programmes were timeshifted to more suitable times for viewing in CET, as well as showing specially commissioned World Service News bulletins from Television Centre. The BBC World Service News studio looked like the BBC's domestic news, though with different graphics and an on-screen logo. The station also broadcast its own Children's BBC junctions from Presentation Studio A. Outside Europe Outside Europe, BBC World Service Television was the name of the 24-hour news, information and current affairs service, launched in Asia on 14 October 1991 as carried by Star TV, and also available from Turkey to South Korea on AsiaSat. Competing against CNN International, it showed current affairs and documentary programming from BBC One and BBC Two in addition to BBC World Service News with entertainment programs aired on Star Plus. Explaining why the company choose to carry BBC WSTV instead of CNN, Richard Li, who was head of Star TV at the time, cited American bias projected in CNN's coverage of the Gulf War, in an interview with The New York Times. News