In February 2003, DIC announced three syndicated children's programming E/I blocks called DIC Kids Network with 200 stations including those owned by
Tribune,
Sinclair,
Clear Channel and
Cox signed up to carry the blocks.
Margaret Loesch and Donald Roberts, a specialist in kids and media at Stanford University, help develop the blocks. By July, 400 stations had signed 3 to 5 year deals to air the block, and it was also announced that the block would launch on September 1. With its three feeds, DIC Kids was on
Fox,
The WB and
UPN affiliates and out fulfilled the networks' Saturday morning blocks by December 1. On March 31, 2004, DIC acquired the North American broadcast rights to
Ace Lightning from
Alliance Atlantis, and would premiere the series on April 5th. On the same day, ''
Liberty's Kids was announced to be added to the block, alongside the return of Sabrina: The Animated Series. A holiday lineup consisting of specials and movies like A Christmas Carol and Inspector Gadget Saves Christmas'' was also planned. DIC also planned to offer up acquired programmes for the block as well. In May 2004, DIC acquired the syndicated television rights to 26 select episodes of
The Smurfs and the first three seasons of
The Adventures of Captain Planet from
Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution for a March 2005 broadcast window. In May 2005, DIC announced that
Strawberry Shortcake would be added to the strand beginning in January 2006 in order to broaden the screen reach for the series. In October, it was confirmed that Strawberry would replace
Captain Planet on the schedule. In mid-2008, the group announced that they would renew the focus of the block with an emphasis on offering
DIC Entertainment programming to additional
digital subchannels to meet their
E/I needs. On June 20, 2008, it has been announced that DIC Entertainment would be acquired by Canada-based Cookie Jar. On July 23, 2008, the deal was completed, and the block was later relaunched as the
Cookie Jar Kids Network on August 31, 2009. The block quietly ended on September 17, 2011. ==Programming==