Universal Kids, a Comcast-NBCUniversal-owned cable channel dedicated to children’s programming, will no longer produce any original content. The move comes after Universal’s unsuccessful rebrand of the Sprout preschool network into Universal Kids, which resulted in a 73% ratings decline between 2017 and 2018.
Universal Kids will remain on air as a linear channel, but per a report in Variety, it will no longer develop original content, instead ramping up its acquisitions from Dreamworks Animation TV. (Dreamworks is also under the NBCUniversal umbrella). The network has also indicated that it will continue to acquire shows from third-party producers.
On the animation front, Universal Kids will soon launch two new Dreamworks series — Where’s Waldo? and Norman Picklestripes — which will join other Dreamworks series currently airing on the channel, such as All Hail King Julien, Dinotrux, The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show, Dragons: Riders of Berk, and Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh.
