Universal Kids alternative timeline (1996 - present)

1996

 * December 10th: The Universal Kids channel is officially announced by NBC. The name originally existed as a weekday afternoon block on NBC, airing from 1988 to 1993.

1997

 * March 3rd: The Universal Kids channel officially launches on cable providers. By the end of 1997, Universal Kids was available to about 10 million homes.
 * In addition, Captain N: The Game Master, Super Mario World, The Smurfs, Wish Kid, Saved by the Bell, Name Your Adventure, Yo Yogi!, Flipper, Gumby and California Dreams debut on the network.
 * June: David Zaslav is appointed CEO of the Universal Kids channel.
 * August: A website for the channel, www.universalkids.com, is launched.
 * September: Howdy Doody, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Lassie are added to the schedule.

1998

 * April: Zaslav announces the launch of Sprout, a preschool block on Universal Kids that would broadcast from 6:00 AM to 12:00 PM.
 * September 14th: Universal Kids rebrands its look to mostly match itself with the 1997 Universal Pictures theatrical logo.
 * October 26th: The Sprout block launches. As a result, six hours of programming are now targeted towards preschoolers.
 * Barney & Friends, Sesame Street, The Busy World of Richard Scarry, Lamb Chop's Play-Along and Thomas & Friends premiere on the new block.
 * November 26th: Universal Kids airs the 72nd Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Sprout programs that were scheduled between 9:00 AM and 12:00 PM are delayed.

1999

 * May: Wish Kid, Captain N: The Game Master, Super Mario World, Yo Yogi! and The Smurfs depart the schedule.
 * Later that month, Hang Time, Saved by the Bell: The New Class and The Anti-Gravity Room premiere.
 * July: After the attempt of the block failed, Zaslav anounces Sprout's loss of three hours on the schedule, only airing from 6:00 AM to 9:00 AM.
 * September 6th: The Sprout block is reduced to three hours. Barney & Friends and Thomas & Friends are taken off the schedule, being replaced by The Big Comfy Couch and Salty's Lighthouse.
 * November 25th: Universal Kids airs the 73rd Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

2000

 * January 10th: On the Sprout schedule, Salty's Lighthouse is reduced to only one 11-minute segment at 8:30 AM. As a result, a segment of Thomas & Friends airs in the other half of its slot at 8:45 AM.
 * May: Universal Kids' first live program block, UKids Zone, debuts and airs weekdays from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM.
 * September 15th: The Sprout block officially dissolves, marking the first time Universal Kids provided no preschool programming since October 1998.
 * October: Universal Kids expands to about 15 million homes.
 * November 23rd: Universal Kids airs the 74th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The presenters of UKids Zone hosted a special edition of the block to promote.

2001

 * January 15th: Universal Kids premieres its first original series, The Craft House, which aired weekdays at 5:30 PM as part of the UKids Zone block, and weekends at 11:00 AM.
 * April: David Zaslav retires as CEO of Universal Kids. Later that month, Stuart Snyder is appointed in Zaslav's place.
 * September 11th: Universal Kids goes off the air for three hours from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM due to the attacks that happened on that day. A special edition of UKids Zone was shown after the sign-off.
 * November 22nd: Universal Kids airs the 75th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

2002

 * January: Universal Kids reaches 20 million homes.
 * March: Snyder announces plans for a revival for the Sprout block, this time expanding to its own 24-hour channel.
 * September 9th: Universal Kids rebrands its look again, using a mix of both the NBC and Universal brandings. The rebrand was developed by Primal Screen from April to July 2002.
 * September 30th: The Sprout channel launches, marking the first time since September 2000 that any content related to Sprout was last seen.
 * October: Universal Kids officially reaches 30 million homes, just nine months after it hit 20 million.
 * November 28th: Universal Kids airs the 76th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.