With the growing digitalisation, kids these days are well versed with the functioning of mobile phones, laptops or any electronic device. A crying baby gets quiet on seeing the shining, beaming screen of mobile phone. Surely, this is not good as a habit, but with some form of introduction to digitalisation, these kids are exploring new platforms and taking a leap in the digital world from a very young age.
YouTube being the favourite digital medium amongst kids and parents is globally accepted and used. Not just restricted to the younger generation, this streaming service is useful for all age-groups. Be it my mom searching for a recipe on YouTube or a baby at home having his meal silently with nursery rhymes playing in front of him, YouTube has made our lives easy and entertaining. With an elaborate content base, the streaming service has left not a single genre unturned.
With the improved network connections and affordable mobile data plans, the internet landscape has changed drastically, leading larger consumption for kids and learning content in India. YouTube content partnerships manager, family and learning India and SEA, Aman Dayal said, “Growth in domestic online video consumption is also driving creation and consumption of lots Indian regional language content in the kids and family space. And the quality is so good, that these creators are seeing consumption in other global markets.”
The kids’ content on the platform is vast and creative. With the launch of YouTube Kids in February 2015 globally and in November 2016 in India, the younger generation has got the world on their fingertips. The content is more diverse than ever before and is not limited to only nursery rhymes. The streaming service sees DIY arts and craft content along with education content produced in regional Indian languages, which is only increasing.
“Animation is an integral part of YouTube Kids today. Popular TV shows by animation studios and broadcasters are also embracing YouTube Kids. We are seeing them uploading specially made for YouTube videos using their popular IPs,” added Dayal.
As per the data shared by Dayal, the kid’s content ecosystem has been growing phenomenally, with Chu Chu TV and Hooplakidz ranking high alongside some global creators. With many channels flourishing, covering some real good kids’ content, the younger generation has a lot to choose from their plate. Videogyan, Rajshri Kids, Green Gold Animation are just a few of the many to make a mark in the digital world.
The success of ChuChu TV is undoubtedly visible with its 29 million subscribers and 18 billion views showing how much kids love the content and the trust it has garnered from the parents. “The content is safe, educative and fun for the young ones. We are clearly one of the most sought after family of channels that parents and caregivers gravitate to,” said Chu Chu TV CEO and creative director Vinoth Chandar.
Chandar thinks that YouTube gives kids and parents the freedom to choose what, when and how much they want to watch, hence making digital platform more powerful as the power is with the viewer. With around 10 channels and a variety of content, Chu Chu TV provides meaningful content which kids across the world can relate to.
With huge response gained by ChuChu TV Tamil, and French, Portuguese and Spanish channels performing pretty good, Chandar and team plans on expanding it to the Russian and Arabic market as well.
Another channel which is popular for its nursery rhymes is Videogyan. Director and CEO Vishal Thatti finds YouTube to be more democratic, helping genuine creators to find the audience irrespective of the size of the studio. The channel mainly focuses on entertaining kids with learning imbibed in it.
“We believe in making kids happy with our content. Our content type ranges from pure entertainment, edutainment and complete learning formats for kids,” said Thatti. The channel is planning to venture into pure educational content creation and is working on new IPs for the digital platform.
Domestic online video consumption can be seen growing and is driving creation and consumption of Indian regional content in the kids and family space. The quality is so good, that these creators are seeing consumption in other global markets. “Operating on a very large base, India is seeing kids and learning content watch time consumption grow at 45% yoy,” informed Dayal.
YouTube has opened up a new stream of revenue for animation creators in India, by helping them showcase their content directly to the viewers and fans on the global platform. The growing audience is an outcome of the creative content and the freedom that creators get, making YouTube the most sought after platform.
