a deal after an out of court settlement, that would gradually drop BBC World Service Television from the satellite broadcaster's offerings. BBC WSTV would be dropped from the channel line-up for the Northeast Asia by mid-April that year, but would be available in the rest of Asia until 31 March 1996. The deal came after such demands from the government of the People's Republic of China. It is alleged that the PRC government was unhappy with BBC coverage of China, and Murdoch's September 1993 speech which declared "(telecommunications) have proved an unambiguous threat to totalitarian regimes everywhere ... satellite broadcasting makes it possible for information-hungry residents of many closed societies to bypass state-controlled television channels", so the Beijing government threatened to block Star TV in the huge mainland Chinese market if the BBC was not withdrawn. The former prime minister Li Peng requested and obtained the ban of satellite dishes throughout the country. There were also reported concerns surrounding editorial control of BBC WSTV after News Corporation's acquisition of Star TV. The subsequent removal of the BBC channel, and many ensuing declaration from Murdoch, led critics to believe the businessman was striving to appease the Chinese government in order to have the ban lifted. Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) gave Rupert Murdoch a mock award titled "P.U.-litzer Prize" for "Media Hypocrite of the Year" in 1994. In 2001, the BBC and CITVC signed a deal which would make BBC World available to "upmarket hotels, as well as guest houses and foreign apartments" in mainland China. See also Fox Networks Group Star China Media (No longer a part of Disney Networks Group Asia Pacific) Disney Star Star (Disney+) Star+ Fox Networks Group Middle East PCCW – part of Richard Li's Pacific Century Group, it operates Now TV, Viu and HK Television Entertainment Notes References External links Defunct television channels Television in Singapore Television stations in Singapore Broadcasting in Singapore Mass media in Singapore Mass media in Southeast Asia Mass media in Taiwan Television in Taiwan Broadcasting in Taiwan Television stations in Taiwan Television channels and stations established in 1990 Television channels and stations disestablished in 2021 Defunct mass media in Hong Kong Mass media companies established in 1990 Mass media companies disestablished in 2021