Discovery Kids (Latin America)

History

The Beginning era (1996–2002)

On 1 November 1996, the channel launched and programming was aimed for older children and preschoolers. Preschool programming aired in the mornings, while shows for older children aired in the afternoons-evenings. The channel was originally named Discovery Kids Channel, but was shortened to simply Discovery Kids in official promos and bumpers. Its slogan was "Discovery Kids is not an infants channel, it's a kids channel!". The logo originally showed a white stick figure jumping on a red background.

In 1998, Discovery Kids changed its name, with the word "channel" getting dropped. The logo got updated, now being a planet with a ring underneath it. Its new slogan "Baterías incluidas" made its debut.

The Rainbow era (2002–2005)

In April 2002, preschool programming began airing around the clock on weekdays, while shows for older children only aired around the clock on weekends. The channel's current slogan "¡Aquí, en Discovery Kids!" also made its debut.

In January 2003, the channel changed its programming to target preschoolers, removing all shows for older children, which furthermore, changed its demographic to children under 8 years of age.

In the early-to-mid 2000s, a website for the channel was launched, titled "Tu Discovery Kids".

In February 2005, Doki, the channel's mascot, was introduced, originally appearing in promos. Several prototypes of the mascot were made on 28 October 2004. His name is an abbreviation of the English term "A Dog for Kids".

The Imaginary era (2005–2009)

In March 2005, the channel itself rebranded, which furthermore, also turned Doki into a standalone mascot.

In 2006, the Doki Descubre shorts began airing on the channel, airing until the year 2010.

In 2008, a new mascot was introduced, named Mundi. Originally made to celebrate Earth Day, it later became one of the standalone mascots for the channel.

The Park era (2009–2013)

In March 2009, the channel received a new look. The logo now depicts a green K with a yellow D enclosed in a blue sphere, alongside a yellow ring in the K. The channel also created specials based on several themes, such as ambience, reading, and sports. The programming was also changed to focus on shows for children with up to 10 years of age. Newer mascots also made their first appearance: Oto, Fico, Anabella, and Gabi. The change originally appeared in Mexico, Argentina, and Chile on 30 March, before expanding to other regions on 30 May, and eventually expanded to Discovery Familia in the year 2010.

In December 2009, a TV series based on its mascots, named Las Aventuras de Doki, premiered, being produced by Nelvana.

In 2010, the final Doki Descubre short aired on the channel.

The World era (2013–2016)

In April 2013, another TV series based on its mascots, simply titled Doki, premiered, being produced by Portfolio Entertainment. The channel got rebranded as well, with the logo now being in 3D, rather than flat 2D. A high-definition feed also launched, with the D in the logo being replaced with the initials HD. The Discovery Kids logo was portrayed as a planet, full of colorful and bright buildings and houses, and the channel's mascots all lived in there.

In September 2014, the entire channel started airing entirely in 16:9. Back then, the channel mostly aired in 4:3, with some 16:9 programs airing since the rise of HD TVs.

On 5 October 2015, Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures premiered on this channel, which was also the first program for older children to be premiered after January 2003, originally carrying a TV-Y7 rating in the United States. It was also the only TV show on the channel to be based on an arcade game.

The Modern era (2016–2021)

On 1 April 2016, programming for older children returned after a 13-year hiatus for afternoons and evenings while preschool programming continues airing in the mornings. The logo was updated as well, replacing the "D" sphere with a speech bubble and removing the ring around the K. Doki characters were also removed from the bumpers and as the channel's mascots, though its TV series was still aired until December 2019.

On 2 January 2017, Angry Birds Toons premiered, making it the only TV show on the channel to be based on a mobile game.

Current era (2021–present)

On 7 April 2021, the channel received a new logo, designed by Spanish design agency Dtmg.tv Studio, with the "D" speech bubble being changed back to a sphere, and the K becoming more lowercase. Children also appear in promos.

Programming

Main article: List of programs broadcast by Discovery Kids (Latin America)

Current programming

Original programming

• Underdogs United
• Earth to Luna!
• Mini Beat Power Rockers
• Agent Binky: Pets of the Universe
• The Dog and Pony Show
• Ba Da Bean
• Lupi & Baduki
• Franklin & Milena on the Quest for Science

Acquired programming

• 44 Cats
• 50/50 Heroes
• 100% Wolf: Legend of the Moonstone
• Annie Rose's Critter Camp
• Barney's World
• The Beachbuds
• Bubble's Hotel
• Cleo & Cuquin
• Curious George
• FriendZSpace
• Ghostforce
• Hello Kitty: Super Style!
• Kangaroo Beach
• Kung Fu Wa!
• Mermicorno: Starfall
• Open Season: Call of Nature
• Peppa Pig
• Petronix Defenders
• Pinocchio and Friends
• Polly Pocket
• S.M.A.S.H!
• Shasha & Milo
• Super Monsters
• Super Wish
• Totally Spies!
• Topo Gigio
• Weird Waters
• Zouk

Former programming

Original programming

• 3, 2, 1, Vamos!
• 7 Chances Para
• Acceso Total
• All Terrain Challange End of the World
• Beto & the Magic Words
• Charlie the Interviewer of Things
• Clara en Foodland
• CyberKids
• Doki
• Fishtronaut
• Hi-5 Fiesta
• Junior y Max
• La Isla de Jordan
• Mercury Beyond Music
• Mini Mini
• My Big Big Friend
• Paleokids
• ¿Porque? ¿Porque?
• ¿Qué Monstruo Te Mordió?
• Ruta Quetzal
• Scouts en Acción
• The Secret Lair
• Supertiernos
• The Zoo of Zu
• Velozmente
• Vivi
• Yoga Camp

Programming from ABC Kids

• Bananas in Pyjamas
• The Koala Brothers
• Milly, Molly
• The Strange Chores
• Tracey McBean

Programming from Canal 5

• Plaza Sésamo

Programming from Cartoon Network Canada

• Caillou
• Harry and His Bucket Full of Dinosaurs

Programming from CBBC and CBeebies

• Animal Park
• Art Ninja
• Boo!
• Bob the Builder
• Charlie and Lola
• Ethelbert the Tiger
• Iconicles
• Junior MasterChef
• LazyTown Extra
• Little Charley Bear
• Little Red Tractor
• Little Robots
• Mister Maker
• Mister Maker Comes to Town
• Mortimer and Arabel
• Octonauts
• Postman Pat
• Rubbadubbers
• Scream Street
• Teletubbies
• Teletubbies Everywhere
• Tree Fu Tom
• Wide-Eye
• The Worst Witch

Programming from CITV

• Albie
• Angelina Ballerina
• Art Attack
• Bernard's Watch
• Construction Site
• Cubeez
• Engie Benjy
• Fetch the Vet
• Fluffy Gardens
• Gaspard and Lisa
• Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids
• How 2
• Louie
• Miffy and Friends
• Mr. Men and Little Miss
• Pocoyo
• Thomas & Friends (series 1–7)
• Tiny Planets
• Tots TV
• Tractor Tom

Programming from Channel 5's Milkshake!

• The Adventures of Bottle Top Bill and His Best Friend Corky
• Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps
• Fifi and the Flowertots
• Floogals
• Franny's Feet
• Jelly Jamm
• Little Princess
• Make Way for Noddy
• Noddy in Toyland
• PB Bear and Friends
• Ricky Zoom
• Roary the Racing Car
• Thomas & Friends (series 8–20)
• Wissper

Programming from CBC Kids

• Animal Mechanicals
• Artzooka!
• Big Block SingSong
• Bruno and the Banana Bunch
• Gofrette
• Lunar Jim
• Monster Math Squad
• Pirates: Adventures in Art
• Poko
• The Save-Ums!
• YaYa & Zouk

Programming from Family Channel

• The Big Garage
• Henry's World
• Justin Time
• Kleo the Misfit Unicorn
• Mentors
• Playdate (2015)
• Rev & Roll

Programming from TVOKids

• Annedroids
• Big Top Academy
• Dino Dan
• Ping and Friends
• Rob the Robot

Programming from Discovery Kids/Hub Network/Discovery Family

• Astronaut Mission
• Adventure Camp
• The Adventures of Chuck and Friends
• Bindi the Jungle Girl
• Endurance
• Hanazuki: Full of Treasures
• Hi-5
• Jaws and Claws
• Jeff Corwin Unleashed
• Kenny the Shark
• Littlest Pet Shop
• Littlest Pet Shop: A World of Our Own
• Mega Movie Magic
• Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks
• My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
• My Little Pony: Pony Life
• Operation Junkyard
• Outward Bound USA
• The Paz Show
• Peep and the Big Wide World
• Prehistoric Planet
• Real Kids, Real Adventures
• Sail Away
• Sci Squad
• Strawberry Shortcake's Berry Bitty Adventures
• ToddWorld
• Trading Spaces: Boys vs. Girls
• Transformers: Rescue Bots
• Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy
• Truth or Scare
• Ultimate Guide to the Awesome
• Wilbur
• Zach's Ultimate Guide

Programming from various Warner Bros. networks

• Bingo and Molly
• Chicken Minute
• Croc Files
• The Crocodile Hunter
• The Jeff Corwin Experience
• Paleoworld
• The Planet's Funniest Animals
• Salty's Lighthouse
• The Ultimate Guide

Programming from Disney Channel and Playhouse Disney/Disney Junior

• Amazing Animals
• Come and Get It!
• The Famous Jett Jackson
• Going Wild with Jeff Corwin

Programming from Amazon Prime Video

• The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle
• Just Add Magic
• Lost in Oz

Programming from Hulu

• The Doozers

Programming from Netflix

• The Adventures of Puss in Boots
• All Hail King Julien
• Dinotrux
• The Ponysitters Club
• Super Monsters
• Turbo Fast

Programming from Nickelodeon and Noggin/Nick Jr.

• A Walk in Your Shoes
• The Backyardigans
• Franklin
• Franklin and Friends
• The Fresh Beat Band
• Jack's Big Music Show
• Julius Jr.
• Lalaloopsy
• LazyTown
• Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends
• Pinky Dinky Doo
• Toot & Puddle
• The Upside Down Show
• Winx Club
• Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!
• Zack & Quack

Programming from Pakapaka

• Puerto Papel

Programming from PBS Kids and Sprout/Universal Kids

• Barney & Friends
• Boohbah
• The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!
• Clifford the Big Red Dog
• Clifford's Puppy Days
• The Deep
• Dinosaur Train
• Dragon Tales
• Elmo: The Musical
• Elmo's World
• Ghostwriter
• It's a Big Big World
• Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks
• Jay Jay the Jet Plane
• Kratts' Creatures
• Little Big Shots
• Martha Speaks
• Nature Cat
• Newton's Apple
• Odd Squad
• The Ollie & Moon Show
• Peg + Cat
• The Puzzle Place
• Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat
• Sid the Science Kid
• Super Why!
• Super Wings
• Wild Kratts
• Wishbone
• WordGirl
• WordWorld
• Zoboomafoo

Programming from TVN

• Vigias del Sur

Programming from YTV and Treehouse TV

• Anthony Ant
• Babar
• Babar and the Adventures of Badou
• Dragon
• Esme & Roy
• I Was a Sixth Grade Alien!
• Incredible Story Studios
• Mike the Knight
• Monster by Mistake
• Mystery Hunters
• Pandalian
• ReBoot
• Screech Owls
• This is Daniel Cook.
• This is Emily Yeung.
• This is Scarlett and Isaiah.
• Timeblazers
• Toopy and Binoo
• Uh Oh!
• Weird-Ohs
• Will and Dewitt
• Willa's Wild Life
• The Zack Files
• The ZhuZhus

Other acquired programming

• A.J.'s Time Travelers
• Albert Says... Nature Knows Best
• Angry Birds Blues
• Angry Birds Stella
• Angry Birds Toons
• Animal Bites
• Animated Tales of the World
• Animated World Faiths
• Apollo's Talls Tales
• Artists
• Banana Zoo
• Barbie Dreamtopia
• Boonie Bears: The Adventurers
• Bookmice
• Calimero
• Cleo & Cuquin
• Composers
• Connie the Cow
• Cro
• Dig & Dug with Daisy
• Digger and Splat
• Dino Aventuras
• Dino Detectives
• Dino Safari
• Dive Olly Dive!
• D.P.A. Detetives do Prédio Azul
• Enchantimals
• Eyewitness
• Fourways Farm
• Friends of Research and Odd Gadgets
• Helen's Little School
• Hi-5 Australia
• Hi-5 House
• I Love Music
• The Insectibles
• Inventors
• Iris, The Happy Professor
• Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures
• Jim Henson's Animal Show
• The Jolliest Elf
• Kitty Cats
• Kong: King of the Apes
• Let's Dance
• Lilybuds
• Lion
• Little People
• The Little Prince
• Little Star
• Maggie & Bianca: Fashion Friends
• MasterChef Junior
• Miffy Classics
• Miffy's Adventures Big and Small
• Miss Moon
• Monchhichi Tribe
• Mr. Magoo
• Muppet Babies
• My Beautiful House
• My Little Pony Tales
• Mythic Warriors
• The New Adventures of A.R.K.
• The New Ghostwriter Mysteries
• No, Really!
• The Oz Kids
• Once Upon a Tree
• Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures
• The Papernauts
• Parque Patati Patatá
• Peanuts
• Piggy Tales
• Pop Sci
• Popular Mechanics for Kids
• Power Players
• Princess of the Nile
• Pucca
• Pumper Pups
• Quiz Time
• Rainbow Ruby
• Religions of the World: Our Worlds Faith
• Robot Trains
• Round the Twist
• Sadie Sparks
• Sammy and Company
• SantApprentice
• Sea Princesses
• Seven and Me
• Sky Trackers
• So You Want To Be A...?
• Splat!
• The StoryTeller
• Sugar Skulls
• Super Dinosaur
• Suzuki's Nature Quest
• Tarzan & Jane
• Team Dronix
• Testament: The Bible in Animation
• There’s No Food Like My Food
• Trucktown
• Twipsy
• Walking with Dinosaurs
• What's The Big Idea?
• Winnie and Wilbur
• Winnie the Whimsical
• Wisdom of the Gnomes
• The World of David the Gnome
• Yummy Toonies
• Zak Storm
• Zoobabu

Website

Discovery Kids has a website that launched in the early-to-mid 2000s, with the app launching in the early-to-mid 2010s. A Brazilian version was also made, with all of its content being translated into Portuguese.

One common feature of the site are its online games, which originally required the Flash Player plugin.

The site offers games and formerly interactive books, and activities. At launch, the website was titled Tu Discovery Kids, with the app being simply titled Discovery Kids at launch.

In March 2005, the website received a major update. New games based on the channel's mascot were made, such as Saltando con Doki.

In 2008, the website received another major update. A video player was added to its home page, alongside a Flash-based interface and the addition of minigames. Accounts were also implemented.

In 2011, the website received yet another major update, now featuring a 3D logo casting shadows in the banner. During this era, the app launched.

Between February 2012 and 2018, a webpage appeared on the website, title Kids en Control. Kids en Control allows children to vote for shows, similar to Cartoon Network's 'Votatoon' which was exclusive to Latin America. The show that have the most votes would air via marathons on Saturdays.

In April 2013, the website received a minor update. The background has been changed to the one from the new look at the time. The background has three variants depending on the hour set in the user's computer: day, noon, and night.

In July 2015, the website and app got rebranded as Discovery Kids Play, featuring the addition of protected content that could only be accessed via an account, as well as HTML5-based games. Web browsers with Flash Player support are still able to play the old site's Flash games. The tudiscoverykids.com domain remained in use until late 2016, when it was changed to discoverykidsplay.com, originally used as a redirect following the launch of Discovery Kids Play.

In December 2019, the website and app was renamed to Discovery Kids Plus, with a new design. The new website is also geo-blocked, being exclusive to Latin America. All of the Flash games from the old sites were also removed due to Adobe Flash Player's end-of-life. The Brazilian website was also updated to redirect to the Spanish website once accessed outside of Brazil.

Following the merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc., on December 12, 2022, the site rebranded to simply Discovery Kids and removed all of its videos and episodes.

Audience composition

According to TGI Latina in 2003, most of the audience who received the channel were female, which represents a total of 56%, with the male audience at 44%. Adult female aged between 25 and 49 years were also involved, as they are commonly the parents of children who guide at watching the channel, representing a total of 49%.

Feeds

The channel broadcasts 5 feeds, each having their own HD simulcast feed.

• Pan-regional feed: broadcasting to most Latin American countries, including the Caribbean. It uses the Colombian (UTC-5) and Argentine (UTC-3) time zones.
• Mexico feed: broadcasting exclusively to that country, with different schedule and TV series. It uses the Mexico City time zone (UTC-6/-5 DST) .
• Colombia feed: broadcasting exclusively to that country, with different schedule. It uses the Bogotá time zone (UTC-5).
• Southern feed: broadcasting to Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, with different schedule. It uses the Buenos Aires time zone (UTC-3).
  • Chilean subfeed: available in Chile with local advertisement. During winter time, it delays programming by one hour to match the country's time zone (turning itself into a +1 timeshift feed). It uses the Santiago time zone (UTC-4/UTC-3 DST).
• Brazil feed: broadcasting exclusively to that country, with different schedule and TV series. Broadcasting in Portuguese, it uses the Brasilia time zone (UTC-3).

Live events

• La Ronda de Discovery Kids: The channel organized live events, named La Ronda de Discovery Kids, where Doki, the channel's mascot, along with characters from the series visited some cities and made performances, originally made to celebrate the channel's 10th anniversary in 2006. The last event with that name was in 2008. The channel still organizes events on Latin American cities from time to time. In 2009, a similar project, named Exploración, which dealt with the environment, was made. In 2010, a similar event, named En sus marcas, listos, ya, was made in Mexico. In July, August, and September 2012, a new event, named Expreso Discovery Kids, was made in city of Mexico and Venezuela.

Notes

References

References

1. (1 May 2003). "Discovery Kids Latin America bulks up on preschool to gain ground in kids pay-TV". Kidscreen.
2. "Tu Discovery Kids".
3. (13 October 2021). "Soy Doki Bonus Track #01 - Primer aparición".
4. (19 September 2021). "Soy Doki - Mis Prototipos - Capitulo 01".
5. (18 October 2021). "Soy Doki Bonus Track #03 - Prototipos de Id's".
6. (23 September 2021). "Soy Doki - El Origen de mi nombre - Capitulo 02".
7. (13 April 2005). "Doki, una imagen nueva para Discovery Kids". El Tiempo.
8. G. Manuel, Alberto. (7 April 2009). "Mi Discovery Kids es su Discovery Kids". Armin.
9. (8 April 2009). "Discovery Kids actualiza su imagen".
10. (29 March 2009). "Discovery Kids renueva su imagen".
11. (4 March 2013). "''Doki: La serie'' llega a Discovery Kids con una serie animada con nuevos amigos".
12. "Discovery Kids HD se lanza en Latinoamérica".
13. (2016-12-30). "Angry Birds Toons llega a la pantalla de Discovery Kids para entretener a grandes y chicos".
14. (8 April 2021). "Dkids New Brand - Toolkit 2021".
15. "Junio en Discovery Kids: Estreno de Lupi y Baduki, Nuevos Episodios de Sasha y Milo junto con Mini Beat Power Rockers".
16. (2024-02-15). "Franjito y Milena - En Busca de la Ciencia: Discovery Kids y Max revelan el primer tráiler de la serie".
17. mi.tv. "Programação Discovery Kids, Hoje {{!}} Programação de TV {{!}} mi.tv".
18. "Hotel Silvestre de Ana Flor se estrena este lunes en Discovery Kids y HBO Max".
19. "Barney's World to Premiere Monday, October 14 on Max | Pressroom".
20. "Enero en Discovery Kids: Estreno de Mermicorno Starfall y nuevos episodios de el Mundo de Barney".
21. "Open Season - Call of Nature: Discovery Kids estrenará una serie animada en 2D de la película".
22. "Discovery Kids".
23. (21 January 2022). "Gulli, Discovery Kids revive Totally Spies!". Kidscreen.
24. "Discovery Kids Plus".
25. "Sinking Ship to distribute Amazon's Just Add Magic".
26. "Discovery Kids".
27. (6 September 2016). "Discovery Kids and TVO reel in Ollie & Moon". Kidscreen.
28. "Deals You Missed: MIPTV edition".
29. (29 September 2015). "Discovery Latinoamérica anuncia el lanzamiento de Discovery Kids Play".
30. (22 June 2020). "DISCOVERY CONSOLIDA SU POSICIONAMIENTO EN EL SEGMENTO DE APP PARA NIÑOS".
31. TGI Latina, [https://web.archive.org/web/20070928024458/http://www.lamac.org/_es/discoverykids_2.php Discovery Kids llega a los niños más pequeños de la región y a sus madres], 2003
32. IBOPE Media, ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20070928024458/http://www.lamac.org/_es/discoverykids_2.php Filtro: Multinacional; Cable 4-11]'', 2003
33. (2007-04-24). "RONDA DISCOVERY KIDS, EN COLOMBIA".
34. (23 July 2012). "Expreso Discovery Kids en Galerias Valle Oriente".