What if NBC Universal, Inc. acquired PBS in 2005?

On October 20, 2004 (just a little over a week after the launch of PBS Kids Go!), PBS announced that it had entered into a partnership with cable provider Comcast and production companies HIT Entertainment and Sesame Workshop to launch a 24-hour cable network aimed at preschool children. Created to “strengthen the competitive positions” of all of the parties, PBS Vice-President of digital ventures Deron Triff noted that the content would be “consistent with PBS’s values” and “meet certain curricular objectives and have been tested for educational efficacy.”On April 4, 2005, Comcast announced that the network would be known as PBS Kids Sprout—a spin-off from PBS's children's programming brand PBS Kids. The service would soft launch as a branded video on-demand (VOD) service. PBS Kids Sprout launched its 24-hour cable channel on September 26, 2005, with a reach of around 16 million viewers across the Comcast and Insight cable systems.

The multi-platform approach was designed to appeal to different viewing habits; the Sprout channel featured dayparted programming blocks, with hosted segments such as activities, features, and promotions for supplemental content on Sprout's website. To increase the variety of its schedule, Sprout did not repackage short-form series into half-hour episodes with interstitial segments, as had usually been the case for series imported for U.S. broadcast. Unlike either PBS Kids or PBS Kids Go!, PBS Kids Sprout operated as an advertiser-supported service running traditional television commercials. However, advertising on the channel was only carried in between programs and were aimed towards parents and caregivers.

A high-definition simulcast launched in September 2010.

Comcast acquired a 51% majority stake in NBC Universal from General Electric in January 2011, and would assume full ownership of the company in 2013. As a result, Comcast's interest in Sprout was turned over to the company. Apax Partners sold HIT Entertainment to Mattel on October 24, 2011; the sale did not include HIT's stake in Sprout, which was retained by Apax. In December 2012, Sesame Workshop sold its interest in Sprout to Comcast. On March 19, 2013, Comcast acquired the remaining 49% of NBCUniversal it did not already own, and concurrently acquired Apax's stake in Sprout. Comcast then acquired PBS's share in Sprout on November 13, 2013, giving it full ownership. As a result, the network's operations were brought under the NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group, and the "PBS Kids" branding was removed (thus officially shortening its name to "Sprout"). Its operations were later moved from Philadelphia to NBCUniversal's facilities in New York City.

Whilst all these complex business arrangements were taking place, on July 7, 2012, Sprout began to produce educational programming blocks for NBC and Telemundo, branded as "NBC Kids" and "MiTelemundo" respectively. The blocks both replaced Qubo (a previous joint venture between NBCUniversal, Ion Media, Corus Entertainment, Scholastic, and Classic Media), which had been airing on NBC and Telemundo since September 2006, but continued to air via a third programming block on Ion Television as well as a separate 24-hour Qubo network until the brand's full discontinuation in February 2021. NBC Kids was discontinued on September 25, 2016 (one day before Sprout's eleventh anniversary) and was replaced by "The More You Know", a block produced by Litton Entertainment that would feature live-action documentary and lifestyle programs aimed at pre-teens and teenagers. However, MiTelemundo continued to air and retain its existing programming until January 6, 2018, when the block became programmed by Litton as well, retaining the "MiTelemundo" name.

Under NBCUniversal ownership, Sprout began to increase its investments in original programming to better compete with Disney Junior and the Nick Jr. Channel, with a goal to double its original series output to at least 30% of its schedule by the end of 2015, and displace older and non-exclusive library content in favor of original series and acquisitions exclusive to the channel. Sprout programs such as *The Chica Show* also earned increased visibility airing on NBC as part of the NBC Kids block.

On September 26, 2015, Sprout underwent a brand refresh to mark the tenth anniversary of its launch, with new on-air imaging inspired by modern technology and mobile devices, a new tiny house-inspired studio at 30 Rockefeller Plaza for its hosted morning block *The Sunny Side Up Show*, as well as the premiere of *Nina's World—*an original animated series spun off from its evening block *The Good Night Show.* Actress Alyssa Milano began to make appearances in interstitial segments as Sprout's "Mom-bassador", with a particular focus on the channel's public service campaign "Kindness Counts".

The network's head Sandy Wax stated that Sprout also planned to experiment with more half-hour programs, and commission programming with more "complex stories" that can appeal better to older preschool audiences.

But in the alternate universe, what if General Electric and Vivendi via NBC Universal, Inc. acquired PBS in 2005.

This theory is interconnected to What if DreamWorks Pictures was founded in 1980 as The Geffen Film Company?

## Changes

* The acquisition would've been announced in October 20, 2004 and completed in September 26, 2005.
* PBS Kids would've become a preschool block on Universal Kids in 2017.
* All PBS and PBS Kids shows would've been distributed by NBCUniversal Syndication Studios "formerly NBC Universal Television Distribution" in 2005.
* All PBS and PBS Kids shows would've been added to the streaming service Peacock.
* All shows would've been made by DreamWorks.