At 06:00 on 19 May 2008, Pop +1 ceased broadcast and was directly replaced on-air with Kix content. Medabots was the first programme to be broadcast under the Kix! identity. Kix was the fourth dedicated kids' channel to be launched by CSC: its three sister channels are Pop which was launched on 1 October 2002, and shows cartoons and pop music videos for a mixed audience; Tiny Pop, which was launched on 27 July 2004, and shows cartoons for young children and pre-schoolers; and Pop Girl, launched on 6 August 2007. On 8 August 2008, Kix launched onto the Freesat platform on channel 606. On 7 May 2013, Kix! was renamed to Kix. The labelling on the onscreen programme guide was changed in accordance with this. However, the channel logo continues to include the exclamation mark. Kix broadcasts on the Freeview digital terrestrial platform since 7 April 2016, following the earlier addition of sister channels POP and Tiny Pop to the service. Kix transmits on the same local-TV multiplex as POP, so that the channel is only available in areas where POP is available. On 30 August 2017, Kix rebranded its identity and is now called Pop Max; however, none of its programming changed. On 27 June 2019, Pop Max moved to the G-MAN multiplex, meaning that the channel only broadcasts in Manchester on the Freeview TV platform.
Kix Power and Kix +1
On 22 July 2013, Kix received a spin-off channel, Kix Power, which replaced Pop Girl +1 on Sky. The subsidiary channel broadcast only Power Rangers programming. Kix Power was replaced by a Kix +1 service on 1 October 2013, and this timeshift ran through October and November. Kix Power was then reintroduced at the end of November for a second run, to operate in the run-up to Christmas, with Kix +1 resuming at the start of January 2014. Kix Power will return, again replacing Kix +1, on an ad-hoc basis around major school holiday periods. On 22 April 2014, Kix +1 relaunched, this time as Kix +. On 14 July 2014, Kix + was closed down and replaced with Pop +1, which closed in 2008 and was replaced with the actual Kix channel. On 27 October 2014, Kix was rebranded as Kix Power for the October half-term. On 1 October 2015, Kix +1 relaunched, replacing Pop Girl. On 14 June 2016, Kix +1 was removed from Freesat and was replaced with Pop +1. On 11 December 2016, Kix Power launched on Virgin Media.
