Star World
Star World (formerly known as Star Plus) is an English language entertainment television channel originally launched on 15 December 1991 by STAR TV in Hong Kong as the old iteration of Star Plus. On 30 March 1996, the channel was split into two, when the former became Star World in East and Southeast Asia part of STAR TV's rebranding, and the latter retained the Star Plus name in India and the Middle East. However, after Star (subsequently acquired by News Corporation) ended its partnership with Zee TV on 30 June 2000, Star Plus was transformed into a Hindi-language channel on 1 July 2000, with Star World being already introduced in the region as an English entertainment replacement.
 Star World logo used in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia | |
| Country | Hong Kong |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Asia (channel based in Hong Kong, available in Mainland China, India, Hong Kong, Macau, Nepal, Pakistan, the Middle East, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bangladesh and Kazakhstan) |
| Headquarters | Hong Kong Taiwan (2001-2020, 2022-present) |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English Arabic Hindi Thai Mandarin Cantonese Korean Japanese |
| Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to 480i/576i for the SD feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | The Walt Disney Company (Southeast Asia) Pte. Ltd. (Disney Branded Television) |
| Sister channels | |
| History | |
| Launched | 15 December 1991 |
| Replaced | Fox Taiwan (relaunch) |
| Closed | 1 October 2017 (Southeast Asia and Hong Kong) 1 February 2020 (Taiwan, first incarnation) 18 March 2020 (South Korea) 30 November 2021 (India) |
| Replaced by | Fox Life (Hong Kong and Southeast Asia) |
| Former names | Star Plus (1991–1996) |
| Links | |
| Website | MENA Taiwan |
The channel's programming line-up mostly consists of entertainment television programmes from the United States, the United Kingdom and sometimes Australia and New Zealand to appeal to English-speaking locals as well as the expatriate population of South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia.[1]
History
Star World was first launched on 15 December 1991 as StarPlus was an English language general entertainment channel showing international television shows from the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, with Zee TV being the Hindi language general entertainment channel counterpart operated the channel joint venture with Zee Telefilms which uplinked Hindi channel Zee TV from Hong Kong. The channel was broadcast across the continent of Asia, reaching from the Far East to the Middle East, as with AsiaSat 1's footprint. Star TV have since regionalised the channel to serve its huge viewerships.
On 30 March 1996, STAR TV split Star Plus' beam into two, in effect, providing two separate services for different regional audiences within STAR TV's footprint. This enabled the channel to provide appropriate programming and viewing time for viewers from different regions in Asia. Star Plus would serve viewers in India and the Middle East from then on, while the new Star World channel welcomed those in East and Southeast Asia. Star TV converted Star Plus into Hindi entertainment channel with some English content programming. Earlier, STAR TV had a joint venture with Zee Telefilms which uplinked Hindi channel Zee TV from Hong Kong. But that partnership with that channel ended on 30 June 2000, resulted the new Star World channel as English entertainment replacement on 1 July 2000 for India and the Middle East.
On 1 October 2017, Hong Kong and Southeast Asian version of Star World was rebranded to Fox Life. The Good Fight was the last program to air before re-brand (Bolt of Talent in Philippine feed).[2] Star World brand remains in versions broadcast to the Middle East, Taiwan, India as well as other South Asian markets.
On 1 February 2020, the Taiwanese version closed down and some programs are moved to Fox. However, two years later, on 1 January 2022, Fox Taiwan reverted back to Star World Taiwan.
Operating channels
Current channels
- Star World Taiwan - broadcast times NST; selected programs are not the same as the Asia feed, including local commercials
- Star World India - broadcast times IND; this has different content from the other feeds; this is the only feed managed by Star India (not by Fox Networks Group)
- Star World HD India - same as the India feed except for the logo and commercial feed; launched on 15 April 2011; only available in India and Nepal
- Star World Premiere HD - broadcast times IND; a premium channel launched on 26 September 2013 in India offering the latest seasons of the biggest shows in American television.
- Star World HD Middle East & North Africa - broadcast times KSA, UAE; including Channel [V] programs.
Former channels
- Star World Vietnam - broadcast times VN; selected programs are not the same as the Asia feed, including local commercials
- Star World HD Asia - same as the Asia feed except for the logo and commercial feed; available in selected territories only
- Star World Asia - broadcast times HKT/SIN and JKT/BKK; simulcast with the Middle East feed at 24:00 to 06:00 (HK/SIN)
- Star World Philippines - broadcast times PH; selected programs are not the same as Asia feed including local commercials and few of the local programs; a subsidiary of Fox Networks Group Philippines
- Star World HD Philippines - same as the Philippines feed except for the logo and commercial feed; launched on 1 March 2012; a subsidiary of Fox Networks Group Philippines
- Star World HD Vietnam - same as the Vietnam feed except for the logo and commercial feed
References
- "STAR World: Feature Channel". Retrieved 13 November 2010.
- "Turn on as Star World rebrands to FOX life - InqPOP!". InqPOP!. 2 October 2017.