Telemundo Kids

Telemundo Kids

Network	Telemundo
Launched	October 6, 2001; 23 years ago (2001-10-06)[1]
Closed	September 3, 2006; 18 years ago (2006-09-03) (later became Qubo)
Country of origin	United States
Owner	Telemundo Network Group, LLC (NBCUniversal)
Formerly known as	Telemundo Infantil (September 16, 1995-November 7, 1998)
Format	Saturday and Sunday mornings children's block
Running time	3 hours
Original language(s)	Spanish
Official website	Telemundo Kids

Telemundo Kids (borrowing its name from Telemundo's 1995–1998 Saturday morning block Telemundo Infantil) was an American children's programming block that debuted on October 6, 2001 on the Spanish-language television network Telemundo.^[2][3] The three-hour block, which aired on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time and Pacific Time, featured live action and animated series aimed at children between the ages of 2 and 14.

Programs featured on the block consisted of a mixture of series originally produced in Spanish and dubbed versions of series that were originally produced and broadcast in English. All shows featured on Telemundo Kids were designed to meet federally mandated educational programming guidelines defined by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) through the Children's Television Act. Telemundo Kids closed on September 3, 2006. The following week, the block's direct successor Qubo on Telemundo debuted.

In October 2001, Telemundo announced that it would launch Telemundo Kids, which served as a revival to Telemundo Infantil (in English: Telemundo Kids) which aired from 1995 to 1998. The block also served as a replacement to Nickelodeon en Telemundo which was discontinued on September 30, 2001, after Telemundo's program supply deal with Nickelodeon had expired. Telemundo Kids featured some programs complaint with Federal Communications Commission and educational programming requirements. The three-hour block typically ran on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Eastern and Pacific Time. All other time periods were filled with infomercials (although some Telemundo affiliates chose to pre-empt the block of favor of the commercials and bumpers).^[4][5] The introduction a new logo with font text (Boink STD) with the orange line with the original 2000 "Telemundo" font, alongside bumpers and promos and controlled by Telemundo Network Group, LLC. (a unit of NBCUniversal).

The block included a three-hour lineup that consisted mainly of dubbed versions of American, Canadian, European animated series the network opted to fully program was mix of acquired from various programming production companies and distributors, this included partnerships with Sony Pictures Television (via Adelaide Productions) and Sesame Workshop with Dragon Tales, the Japanese-based animation studio Toei Animation, the European-based animation studio BRB International and the Canadian-based animation studio Nelvana. However, Nickelodeon (owned by Viacom) returned to the network in 2004 to 2006. The block was divided across Sábados de Fantasía ("Fantasy Saturdays") and Domingos de Aventura ("Adventure Sundays"). The block's initial lineup consisted mainly of the originally produced and broadcast in English included Ni Ni's Treehouse, Men in Black: The Series, Dragon Tales, Jackie Chan Adventures and Max Steel, as well as the Japanese anime series such as Dragon Ball Z.^[6]

On September 18, 2004, Nickelodeon-produced shows returned to Telemundo three years after Nickelodeon en Telemundo's closure. Programming featured on the block included Rugrats, Hey Arnold!, and Dora the Explorer (all of which aired on both Nickelodeon en Telemundo and Nick on CBS/Nick Jr. on CBS), along with All Grown Up!. Three Canadian shows also joined the lineup, they were Wimzie's House from CBC, Monster by Mistake and the Nelvana-produced show, Jacob Two-Two from YTV. While Nelvana had begun combining production show of the agreement picking up programs for the Univision's sister channel, Telefutura cartoons for children's programming block, Toonturama line-up with the seven shows (such as Tales from the Cryptkeeper, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, Stickin' Around, Anatole, Ned's Newt, Mythic Warriors and The Dumb Bunnies) as part of the growing cross-promotion aired from 2002 to 2005.^[7][8]

Following the sale of Telemundo to NBC in 2001 and CBS and Viacom's split in early 2006, the block was discontinued on September 3, 2006. Some programming like Jacob Two-Two moved to the block's direct successor Qubo, which premiered the following week. Most other programming, including the Nickelodeon shows, were removed completely, although Dora the Explorer (joined by its spin-off series Go, Diego, Go!) was transferred to competitor Univision as part of their newly launched Planeta U block on April 5, 2008. Six years later, they were replaced by Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Handy Manny when Univision launched a sub-block called "Disney Junior en Univision".

Due to Discovery declining to renew its contract with NBC for its Saturday morning Discovery Kids on NBC block after the March of that year, the discontinuation of Telemundo Kids occurred concurrently with the discontinuation of Discovery Kids on NBC, citing a desire to focus its children's programming efforts exclusively on the Discovery Kids cable channel.

In May 2006, NBC, Telemundo and Ion Media Networks unveiled a joint venture with Corus Entertainment, Scholastic, Nelvana, Classic Media (and its subsidiary Big Idea Productions) known as Qubo, which would aim to provide educational programming aimed at children between the ages of 4 and 8. This multi-platform programming endeavor would also comprise children's program blocks airing both English version on NBC and Ion Media's i: Independent Television (now Ion Television), the Spanish version block on Telemundo, as well as a 24-hour digital multicast channel on i's owned-and-operated stations (alternatively known as Qubo Channel), video on demand services and a branded website. The Qubo endeavor included a three-hour Saturday and Sunday morning block on the network in 90-minute blocks, which replaced Telemundo Kids on September 9, 2006.

However, in 2012, the Qubo blocks on NBC and Telemundo were discontinued in favor of both NBC Kids and MiTelemundo respectively, leaving Ion Television as the only network to retain a Qubo-branded children's block until its closure of Qubo Channel on February 28, 2021, as the E.W. Scripps Company acquired Ion Media on January 7, 2021, and decided to discontinue the Qubo brand altogether.

On September 9, 2006, Qubo premiered on weekend morning blocks on NBC (which aired exclusively on Saturday mornings, replacing Discovery Kids on NBC, a weekly block programmed by the Discovery Kids cable network) and Telemundo (which aired on both Saturday and Sunday mornings, replacing Telemundo Kids). This was followed by the September 15 introduction of a daytime block on Ion Television (then known as i: Independent Television), which initially aired on Friday afternoons. At launch, its programming included the first-run animated series Dragon (produced by Scholastic), Jacob Two-Two and Jane and the Dragon (produced by Canadian animation studio Nelvana), along with VeggieTales and its spin-offs 3-2-1 Penguins! and Larryboy: The Cartoon Adventures (produced by Classic Media subsidiary Big Idea Entertainment).^{[9][10][11][12]}

Due to regulations defined by the Children's Television Act that require stations to carry E/I compliant programming for three hours each week at any time between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. local time, some Telemundo stations defered certain programs aired within its Saturday morning block to Sunday daytime or earlier Saturday morning slots, or (in the case of affiliates in the Western United States) Saturday afternoons as makegoods to comply with the CTA regulations.

Although the Telemundo Kids block regularly aired on Saturday and Sunday mornings, affiliates in some parts of the country deferred certain programs within the lineup to Sunday morning time slots to accommodate locally produced programs (such as weekend morning newscasts) or due to scheduling issues with regional or network sports broadcasts that start in time periods normally occupied by the block.

Telemundo Kids had concerns about commercial limits during its programming to its affiliates, including KTEL-TV in Albuquerque, New Mexico.^[13][14]

The six Telemundo Kids animated and live-action Spanish-dubbed shows including Jackie Chan Adventures, Dragon Tales, Juana la Iguana, Las Tres Mellizas, Nico and Dragon Ball Z were having a changed schedule for a weekend as the Sábados de Fantasía (Fantasy Saturdays) block aired on every Saturday, but the six shows were still included with Domingos de Aventura (Adventure Sundays) in scheduled and changing the time at 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. ET/PT on Telemundo since October 25, 2003 with the paid programming continued with Telemundo Kids in the next schedule time clock area on weekends.

However, other shows (including Men in Black: The Series, Max Steel, Ni Ni's Treehouse, Auga Viva, Bizbirije and Toonimals!) were removed or changed in the schedule on October 19, 2003, while the schedule was changed again when Nickelodeon programming return to air four shows and some Canadian shows with Spanish-dubbed in Telemundo Kids premiered on September 18, 2004.

Not only were changing schedules and commercial limits had concerns on the children programming block, they were also delays on programming premieres. Men in Black: The Series was originally scheduled to premiere on the block on November 11, 2001. However, it was delayed for one week due to scheduling issues with Dragon Tales on Telemundo at 7:30 a.m. Men in Black: The Series was rescheduled to November 18, 2001.

• Qubo - Successor block to Telemundo Kids, which then became exclusive to a program block on Ion Television and a digital multicast network until its closure in 2021.
• Children's programming on Telemundo
• NBC Kids/MiTelemundo - Telemundo also aired a version of the block under "MiTelemundo" brand, which was aired same as the main program, featuring a separate lineup of Spanish-dubbed programs from July 7, 2012, until December 31, 2017.
• Discovery Kids on NBC - The block was produced under a time-lease agreement with Discovery Kids.
• Nickelodeon en Telemundo - Telemundo entered into a programming agreement with Nickelodeon to carry the cable channel's programming as part of a morning children's program block.
• TNBC - TNBC was an American teen-oriented programming block that aired on NBC from September 12, 1992, to September 28, 2002.