Nickandmore!

NBCUniversal has confirmed to Kidscreen that the Universal Kids TV channel will cease operation on March 6, 2025. The news comes days after some cable operators, including Spectrum, informed customers that the channel would be removed on that date.

The channel was first announced in 2004 as a joint-venture between Comcast, HIT Entertainment, PBS and Sesame Workshop. Originally called PBS Kids Sprout, the service debuted as a Video On Demand service in April 2005 before the linear TV channel launched on September 26. Comcast’s NBCUniversal acquired full ownership in November 2013.

In May 2017, it was announced the channel would rebrand as Universal Kids. The rebrand took place on September 9. Within two years, the channel announced they were getting out of the original programming business. Over the past few years, the network’s line-up has mostly featured a few acquired shows like Masha and the Bear and CoComelon.

The channel was never a major player in kids TV, always far behind competitors (Nick Jr. and Disney Junior in its preschool-focused days, and all the other kids networks afterwards). The most recent weekly data from TVNewser for the week ending January 5, 2025, Universal Kids averaged 12,000 total viewers in total day (6a-6a) and 15,000 in primetime (8-11pm).

NBCUniversal told Kidscreen they are still committed to kids/family programming, but will do so only through their streaming service Peacock and through DreamWorks Animation. Recently it was announced that Comcast would spin-off most of their cable TV networks, but it’s clear that Universal Kids was not part of that plan.