LATV originated in 2001 as a programming format on KJLA (channel 57), an independent television station licensed to Los Angeles suburb of Ventura, California (which signed on in 1990 as KSTV-TV, a Galavisión affiliate), which mainly carried Spanish language programming as well as a limited amount of English language content. The format was an outgrowth of the station's nighttime and weekend programming, which it adopted in July 1998, following its disaffiliation from The WB (done to protect existing affiliate KTLA, after KJLA gained must-carry status on Los Angeles area cable providers); the remainder of the schedule at this time consisted of financial news programming and overnight programming from Shop at Home Network. As Los Angeles's first bilingual television station LATV focused on music in its flagship shows LATV Live and Mex 2 the Max. In 2003 the local network expanded its programming to a 24-hour schedule.