Spotting a trend, PBS Sprouts a new little channel.

Many toddlers would like nothing more than to sit in front of a television and watch the same episode of Nick's Dora the Explorer over and over again, day in and day out.

But forcing their parents to do the same is enough to make even the sanest of caregivers lose their minds.

It was with this in mind that the PBS broadcast network chose to launch PBS Kids Sprout, a national 24/7 channel aimed at the littlest of viewers but appealing to parents and caregivers. The channel, which launched in late September 2005, is currently available in 16 million homes on digital cable and satellite TV.

"The idea is simple and clear," said Sandy Wax, president of Philadelphia, PA-based PBS Kids Sprout. "Sometimes TV becomes a child's babysitter because caregivers need to shower or make dinner, and a 24-hour channel really addresses this consumer need. On the other hand, since it's on 24 hours a day, parents can sit and watch the channel with their kids; It works both ways. This is a slam dunk, a winning proposition," she said.

The result of a partnership between PBS, Hit Entertainment and Comcast, Sprout offers such tried-and-true PBS standbys as Sesame Street, Barney & Friends and Angelina Ballerina, but is actually a whole new breed of public television--this channel pauses for regularly scheduled commercial breaks.

"We're still very much committed to non-commercial broadcasting," said John F. Wilson, senior vice president of PBS Programming. "But it just made sense economically."

Wilson was quick to add that ads are geared toward parents--not kids-and that programs won't be interrupted--the commercials run between shows.

While Sprout might be the latest kid-friendly addition, it certainly isn't the only new candidate competing for children's attention in the U.S. this season. The Cartoon Network, which is owned by Time Warner, launched a two-hour block of animated shows aimed directly at the toddler set in late August 2005. Called TickleU, this weekday block features shows like Peppa Pig, about a bossy little piglet who lives with her parents and little brother; Harry and His Bucket Full of Dinosaurs, a series that tells the tale of a five-year-old boy with a vivid imagination who discovers a dusty, old bucket that contains six toy dinosaurs he imagines to be real; and Gerald McBoing Boing, about a child who speaks only in sounds and noises.

TickleU shows, which are designed to help pre-schoolers adopt a sense of humor about life, were chosen by an advisory board consisting of child development and psychology experts, including an author who has written on the importance of play for children's health and development, the executive director of the Toy Industry of America Foundation, and a kids' television researcher.

"The folks on the board focused on different disciplines," said Alice Cahn, vice president of Programming and Development for Cartoon Network's kids' businesses. "Each brought a different perspective and could tell us what children's reactions would be," she said.

She continued: "As adults, we trust that TV can be educational for our children and we expect there to be choices out there. Our interest at the Cartoon Network is in producing TV for children. A lot of programming is pushing kids to acquire sets of skills before they're ready, so we wanted a place where they could just play."

Yet, while some networks went the scientific route when choosing shows for their kid-aimed blocks, others--and there are many--just wanted to bring in some semi-educational fun. Viacom offers both Nick Jr. and Noggin. Discovery Kids offers Read> Set, Learn. And Walt Disney offers Playhouse Disney.

According to Nielsen Media Research, there are approximately 15.9 million children ages two-to-five-years-old in the U.S., and the company estimates that they watch an average of three hours and 40 minutes of TV each day.

Even so, many wonder why there appears to be a glut in children's programming.

Some cite the FCC's recent decision that broadcasters must increase educational programs for kids. Though there have long been guidelines requiring broadcasters to set aside a certain amount of time for educational programming for children, the FCC's new rules take into account the nation's move away from analog--and toward digital--transmission.

This move will let stations broadcast a number of channels, whereas before they could only show one. The new FCC rules would extend these requirements to these new channels. Entertainment companies have been resisting, contending that some of these new channels could be useful for formats like news channels--which would not be conducive to kiddie shows.

But many don't think these new blocks and channels are a reaction to the FCC at all. "I don't think so," said Cartoon Network's Cahn. "It's just that this is a generation of parents who grew up on Sesame Street and who now recognize there should be a wealth of options for kids," she said. "Good TV has always been a part of their lives and they want it to be a part of their children's."