Universal Kids facts for kids
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Nationwide |
| Headquarters | 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | NBCUniversal Television and Streaming |
| Parent | NBCUniversal (Comcast) |
| Sister channels |
List
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| History | |
| Launched | September 26, 2005 |
| Former names |
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| Links | |
| Webcast | (subscribers only) |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Streaming Services | FuboTV, YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, DirecTV Stream |
(requires subscription to access content)
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Universal Kids is an American TV channel made for children. It is owned by NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, which is part of Comcast.
The channel first started on September 26, 2005. Back then, it was called PBS Kids Sprout. It focused on shows for very young children (preschoolers). It was a joint project between PBS, Comcast, Sesame Workshop, and HIT Entertainment. It was also connected to the PBS Kids brand.
In 2011, Comcast bought most of NBCUniversal. Over time, NBCUniversal bought out the other owners of the channel. By 2013, NBCUniversal owned the channel completely. At that point, its name was shortened to Sprout. Under NBCUniversal, the channel started making more of its own original shows.
In 2017, the channel changed its name again to Universal Kids. It started showing programs for older kids and teens in the evenings. This included shows from DreamWorks Animation, game shows, and kid-friendly versions of popular reality shows like American Ninja Warrior and Top Chef. The channel still shows preschool programs during the daytime.
Around 2019, Universal Kids stopped making new original shows. Now, it mostly relies on shows it buys from other companies and content from DreamWorks Animation. Some of its original shows moved to NBCUniversal's streaming service, Peacock.
As of September 2018, about 56.24 million homes in the United States can watch Universal Kids.
Contents
Channel History
Early Years as PBS Kids Sprout (2005–2017)
How the Channel Started
In 2004, PBS announced a plan to create a 24-hour TV channel for preschool children. They teamed up with Comcast and production companies like HIT Entertainment and Sesame Workshop. On April 4, 2005, Comcast shared that the new channel would be called PBS Kids Sprout. It was a spin-off from the popular PBS Kids brand.
The channel first launched as a "video on-demand" (VOD) service. This meant viewers could choose what to watch, when they wanted. The 24-hour cable channel officially began on September 26, 2005. It reached about 16 million homes through Comcast and Insight cable systems.
PBS Kids Sprout had different blocks of shows throughout the day. It also featured short segments with hosts, activities, and information about online content. The channel only showed commercials between programs, and these ads were for parents and caregivers. In September 2010, a high-definition (HD) version of the channel became available.
Becoming Part of NBCUniversal
In 2011, Comcast bought a big part of NBCUniversal from General Electric. By 2013, Comcast owned NBCUniversal completely. Because of this, Comcast also took over ownership of Sprout.
In 2012, Sprout started creating special educational blocks for NBC and Telemundo. These blocks were called "NBC Kids" and "MiTelemundo." They replaced Qubo, which was another children's programming block.
In December 2012, Sesame Workshop sold its share in Sprout to Comcast. Then, in March 2013, Comcast bought the rest of NBCUniversal and also the remaining shares of Sprout from other partners. Finally, on November 13, 2013, Comcast bought PBS's share. This made Comcast the full owner of the channel.
After this, the "PBS Kids" name was removed, and the channel became known simply as "Sprout." Its operations moved from Philadelphia to NBCUniversal's offices in New York City. Under NBCUniversal, Sprout started investing more in its own original shows. The goal was to have original series make up at least 30% of its schedule by the end of 2015. This helped Sprout compete with channels like Disney Junior and Nick Jr.. Some Sprout shows, like The Chica Show, also aired on NBC as part of the NBC Kids block.
On September 26, 2015, Sprout celebrated its tenth anniversary with a new look. It had new on-air graphics inspired by modern technology. Its morning show, The Sunny Side Up Show, got a new studio at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. The channel also premiered Nina's World, an animated show based on its evening block The Good Night Show. Actress Alyssa Milano appeared on the channel as a "Mom-bassador." She helped promote the channel's "Kindness Counts" campaign.
The head of the network, Sandy Wax, said Sprout wanted to try more half-hour shows. They also wanted to create shows with more "complex stories" that would appeal to older preschool children.
Becoming Universal Kids (2017–Present)
In August 2016, NBCUniversal bought DreamWorks Animation. In January 2017, Deirdre Brennan became the new president of Sprout.
On May 1, 2017, NBCUniversal announced that Sprout would relaunch as Universal Kids on September 9, 2017. The idea was for Universal Kids to be a bigger brand for all of NBCUniversal's family shows. It would have shows for older kids and pre-teens in the evenings. Preschool programming would still air during the day under the "Sprout" brand, from 3 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET. Brennan explained that Sprout needed to "grow up" with its audience. Universal Kids would "offer something to 2 to 12 year olds that has a slightly different purpose."
The new channel launched with original non-scripted shows. These included Bear Grylls: Survival School and Top Chef Junior. NBCUniversal planned to invest a lot in new content for Universal Kids over the next three years. The launch lineup also included many shows from other countries, especially the U.K., Australia, and Canada. Brennan noted that kids today are "globally aware," so the network wanted to show foreign series that hadn't aired in the U.S. yet.
Universal Kids also used content from DreamWorks Animation. It aired TV premieres of DreamWorks shows that were originally made for Netflix, such as All Hail King Julien and Dragons: Riders of Berk. Experts thought that combining DreamWorks shows with Universal Kids would help NBCUniversal compete with other big children's networks. The channel also planned to keep investing in preschool shows for the Sprout block.
However, Universal Kids saw a big drop in viewers compared to when it was Sprout. Reports showed a 30% decrease in 2017 and a 73% drop in 2018. In February 2019, Frances Berwick replaced Deirdre Brennan as president. In April 2019, Universal Kids got a new logo and look. On June 19, it was reported that Universal Kids had stopped developing new original shows. The channel would now mostly rely on DreamWorks content and shows it bought from other companies. Some Universal Kids original series, like American Ninja Warrior Junior and Where's Waldo?, moved to NBCUniversal's new streaming service, Peacock.
According to Nielsen ratings, Universal Kids was the 132nd most-watched TV network in the U.S. in 2021. It was ahead of only a few other children's channels on the list. In 2022, it dropped to 139th place.
Channel Programming
Today, Universal Kids often airs long blocks of one show. These blocks can be 1 to 3 hours long and feature many segments or episodes played continuously. This is similar to how popular children's shows are streamed on YouTube. The channel also airs traditional marathons of episodes. This way of scheduling started in the summer of 2020.
Before, the channel produced its own original shows. These included the Top Chef spin-off Top Chef Junior, game shows like Beat the Clock and The Noise, the room makeover show Get Out of My Room, and American Ninja Warrior Junior. The channel also airs several shows from DreamWorks Animation. Some of these were first made for Netflix. Universal Kids has also bought and co-produced shows with international partners. In 2021, the channel got the rights to air content from the popular YouTube channel Cocomelon.
Preschool Programming
Before Universal Kids launched, Sprout continued to show new series. These included Kody Kapow, Dot, Nina's World, and the DreamWorks-produced Noddy, Toyland Detective. New shows like Masha and the Bear also premiered on the Sprout block after the relaunch.
On August 14, 2017, Sprout replaced its long-running morning block Sunny Side Up with Sprout House. This show was later renamed Snug's House in 2018. It featured Carly Ciarrocchi and a new talking dog character named Snug. They appeared in short 90-second segments throughout the block. Unlike Sunny Side Up, these segments were pre-recorded. This made them easier to produce and share on digital platforms.
With the launch of Sprout House, the channel started to feature its mascot, Chica, less often. However, Chica still appeared in some segments until 2020. At that time, Sprout House and Snug's House segments were removed from Universal Kids. The channel briefly aired reruns of The Chica Show, which was a former Sprout original show starring Chica. This happened on May 20, 2019, along with Moon and Me and Mofy. However, these shows stopped airing later that year or in 2021. The Chica Show did air again briefly on December 24 and 25, 2022. After that, it stopped airing, marking the end of the channel's long-time chicken mascot and the last bit of the original Sprout channel.
International Reach
Universal Kids has two versions in the United States. One is for the East Coast, and the other is a time-delayed version for the West Coast. The DreamWorks Channel is like Universal Kids but for audiences around the world. In the United Kingdom, Sky Kids serves a similar purpose through Comcast's Sky division.
See also
In Spanish: Universal Kids para niños
- Peacock, a streaming service that hosts some Universal Kids content.
- DreamWorksTV
