Universal Kids

Universal Kids (formerly PBS Kids Sprout and Sprout) was an American digital cable and satellite television network that is owned by the NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group subsidiary of NBCUniversal, itself a division of Comcast. The network broadcasts children's programming, and takes the branding of the sister company, Universal Pictures. Its daytime lineup is heavily supplied by preschool-oriented programs, while its evening and primetime lineup are made up of programs aimed generally towards pre-teens and young teenagers.

The channel was launched on September 26, 2005 and was officially dead on March 6, 2025.

Background[]

Universal Kids traces its origins to the PBS Kids network (referred to as the PBS Kids Channel in press materials), which launched on September 6, 1999 coinciding with the rebranding of PTV, PBS’ children’s programming block, to PBS Kids that day. The PBS Kids feed was available on high-tier subscription providers, and was also offered to PBS member stations for use on a "cablecast" service (a subscription-based local channel provided by the member station) or for use on the member station's free-to-air analog channel to provide a portion of the daytime PBS Kids programming on the station. Participating stations were required to pay an annual fee of $1,000 to use the feed. At launch, 32 PBS member stations had signed up to use the service. The channel was created, in part, to compete against Nick Jr. and its sister network Noggin (which now shares its name with the Nick Jr. block). Because the pay TV rights to the Children’s Television Workshop’s program library were owned by Noggin (which CTW owned a 50% interest in at the time), the channel did not broadcast any CTW programming, including Sesame Street, a longtime staple of PBS' children's programming lineup. The CTW-produced Dragon Tales, which premiered on the same day as the launch of the PBS Kids Channel, was the only exception to this.

The channel was unsuccessful and had only reached 9 million households as of 2002, compared to Nick Jr.'s 23.3 million households at the time. Once the channel shut down, many member stations which had been using the PBS Kids channel on their cablecast channels or free-to-air digital subchannels continued to operate their children's channels as local services scheduled independently of a satellite feed, while other member stations shut down their kids channels entirely and redirected viewers of those channels to the newly launched PBS Kids Sprout. PBS later revived the PBS Kids Channel on January 16, 2017, this time with an online streaming option in addition to utilizing largely the same distribution methods that had been used for the original channel.

History[]

As Universal Kids (2017–2025)[]

On May 1, 2017, NBCUniversal announced that Sprout would be relaunched as Universal Kids on September 9, 2017. With the rebranding, the network revamped its evening and primetime programming to target preteens aged 8–12. Universal Kids continues to broadcast preschool programming, initially retaining the Sprout brand, occupying 15 hours per-day of programming from 3:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET.

Network president Deirdre Brennan explained that Universal Kids' new programming would be distinguished from its competitors, stating that "we're offering something to 2 to 12 year olds that has a slightly different purpose — widening their eyes, opening their minds and celebrating many aspects of being a kid. We have great [shows] for the preschoolers, which is important, but we needed to grow up with the rest of the family." Universal Kids will initially focus on acquired programs and unscripted series (such as Top Chef Junior, a spin-off of the Bravo reality franchise Top Chef), with plans for scripted original programming in the future. NBCUniversal intended to make "significant" investments in original content for Universal Kids over the next three years. The launch lineup featured a large number of international acquisitions, particularly from the U.K. Australia and Canada; Brennan acknowledged that since youth audiences had become "globally aware", the network wanted to showcase foreign series that had not yet aired in the U.S.

Universal Pictures' acquisition of DreamWorks Animation in 2016 would also be leveraged by Universal Kids to bolster its programming; industry observers felt that the DWA purchase and the launch of Universal Kids were meant to help NBCUniversal establish a viable multi-platform presence in children's media, and give the company a competitor to other major children's brands such as Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and Disney Channel. Universal Kids has also aligned itself with DHX Media and its Canadian Family, Family Chrgd and Family Jr. television channels by acquiring and co-producing a number of series together. DHX had previously signed a partnership with DreamWorks.

After the relaunch, the channel has seen a significant erosion in viewership, with IndieWire reporting a 30% decline in 2017, followed by a 73% drop in 2018. Brennan was replaced by Frances Berwick as network president in February 2019.

On April 12, 2019, Universal Kids revealed a new logo, branding, and slogan "Adventure On!", coinciding with the U.S. cable TV premiere of Dinotrux two days later.

On June 19, 2019, Kidscreen reported that in a bid to ensure long-term viability, the channel had ceased developing new original series, leaving it to focus on acquired content, and productions from DWA. The network's then-upcoming original shows, such as the new Where's Waldo? series and Norman Picklestripes would air as scheduled, along with other upcoming originals such as the DHX co-commissioned Bajillionaires, Create the Escape, and Top Chef Junior: Remix. Universal Kids will now transition to relying more on acquired shows and series produced by DreamWorks.

On March 6, 2025, Universal Kids broadcasted a message that said “Universal Kids is no longer in service” after a commercial, marking its end. It was shut down due to NBCuniversal, the channel’s parent company, focusing on streaming instead.

Universal Animation Studios Shows[]

DreamWorks Television Animation Shows[]

Noddy, Toyland Detective (September 3, 2016-present)
All Hail King Julien (September 9, 2017-present)
DreamWorks Dragons (September 9, 2017-present)
The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show (April 8, 2018-present)
The Adventures of Puss in Boots (October 15, 2018-present)
DreamWorks Dragons (February 2019-present)
Dinotrux (April 8, 2019-present)
Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh (April 27, 2019-present)
Where's Waldo? (July 6, 2019-present)
Trolls: The Beat Goes On! (November 16, 2020-present)
Mr. Magoo (TBA)
Harvey Street Kids (TBA)
Dawn of the Croods (TBA)
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (TBA)

Upcoming Shows[]

Chuck's Choice (TBA)
The Bagel and Becky Show (TBA)
The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat (TBA)
Toonsylvania (TBA)
Invasion America (TBA)
Father of the Pride (TBA)
The Penguins of Madagascar (TBA)
Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness (TBA)
Monsters vs. Aliens (TBA)
Spirit Riding Free (TBA)
Alienators: Evolution Continues (TBA)
Kung Fu Panda: The Paws of Destiny (TBA)
The Adventures of Little Audrey (TBA)
Kat Harvey and Woody Woodpecker (TBA)

non-Universal Kids Shows[]

The Deep (September 9, 2017-present)
Little Big Shots (September 9, 2017-present)
Bear Grylls Survival School (September 9, 2017-present)
GWR: Officially Amazing (September 9, 2017-present)
Hank Zipzer (September 9, 2017-present)
Little Lunch (September 9, 2017-present)
The Next Step (September 9, 2017-present)
Nowhere Boys (September 9, 2017-present)
Top Chef Junior (October 13, 2017-present)
The Noise (October 23, 2017-present)
Inspector Gadget (November 20, 2017-present)
Airmageddon (January 1, 2018-present)
Beat the Clock (February 6, 2018-present)
Big Star Little Star (February 10, 2018-present)
Matilda and The Ramsay Bunch (February 10, 2018-present)
Life Hacks for Kids: On the Road (March 3, 2018-present)
The Big Fun Crafty Show (May 11, 2018-present)
Junk Drawers Magical Adventures (May 12, 2018-present)
Mighty Mustangs (June 4, 2018-present)
Driving Me Crazy (June 5, 2018-present)
Tricked Nation (June 5, 2018-present)
Get Out of My Room (June 11, 2018-present)
Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street (June 23, 2018-present)
Annedroids (August 11, 2018-present)
American Ninja Warrior Junior (October 13, 2018-present)
The Voice Kids (Octobet 20, 2018-present)
NBC News for Universal Kids (September 29, 2018-present)
The Ollie & Moon Show (May 27, 2017-present)
Dot. (October 22, 2016-present)
Masha and the Bear (July 22, 2017-present)
Preschool Popstars (January 1, 2019-present)
Totally Spies! (June 24, 2019-present)
Polly Pocket (July 1, 2019-present)
Thomas & Friends (TBA)
The Toon Squad (TBA)

Universal Studios Movies that aired on Universal Kids[]

Current programming[]

¹ Also aired on NBC Kids.
² Also aired on MiTelemundo.

From Cartoon programming[]

Animated[]


Title	Premiere Date	Source (s)
Clang Invasion	July 1, 2019	September 6, 2020
Ivick Von Salza The Little Lumberjack	July 1, 2019
Harry and Bunnie	July 6, 2019

Acquired programming[]

Animated[]


Title	Premiere date	Source(s)
All Hail King Julien	September 10, 2017
DreamWorks Dragons	September 10, 2017
The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show	April 15, 2018	^[1]
The Adventures of Puss in Boots	October 13, 2018
Mighty Mike	September 2, 2019	[f]^[2]
Trolls: The Beat Goes On!	November 16, 2020	^[3]