YouTube Kids – an app which is taunted to be 100% kid friendly has been launched by Google. This is Google’s first product built completely in-house keeping the requirements of kids under the age of 12, in mind. The app which can be accessed only in the U.S. can be downloaded by both Android (Google Play Store) and iOS users. According to Google it will be soon available on Kurio and Nabi kids’ tablets.
Built with the aim of making learning easy and fun for the kids, YouTube Kids is very simple to use and is packed with age-appropriate videos, channels and playlists. The content on this app is finely curated, shedding away the adult-oriented content. The channels and playlists can be browsed in four categories: Shows, Music, Learning and Explore. Also keeping the needs of the kids in mind, the interfaces of this app features large images and colorful icons.
The content on YouTube Kids is totally family oriented. As a parent you can rest assured that the videos on this app are narrowed down to content appropriate to kids. For instance, along with favorites like Jim Henson TV, DreamWorks TV, Talking Tom and Friends, Goose Club, kids can also discover new facts about, say Dinosaurs from the National Geographic Kids, learn technology from Reading Rainbow etc. The app will soon have amazing videos from Stampylonghead and Vlogbrothers.
The best part of the app is that it comes with parental controls. Thus the app has Timer, Sound settings, Search settings and Product Feedback controls. The built-in Timer allows the parents to limit the kid’s on-screen time. Also it helps you by alerting the child that the session is over. While with the sound setting you can switch off the background music and sound effects, the search setting enables you to view just the pre-selected videos. You can in fact turn off the search option too.
Google’s entry into the children’s market is something which was long overdue. With the launch of this app, YouTube is following the lead of other video providers. For e.g. Netflix which has its own kids’ section with a whole range of parental control tools. The same is also provided by Amazon’s “Free Time”.
Recent surveys show that children are spending more time watching videos online rather than watching videos. Thus there surely is a need and high demand of mediums which cater to the needs of the kids. At the same time this is a growing market which needs to be minutely explored and leveraged.
We are sure the launch of this app is good news for both parents and kids. There can hardly be a better way to give your kid the best from the world of teaching and learning. This app will surely cater to the specific needs of the kids, give answers to their curious questions and help them grow into intelligent, knowledgeable and compassionate human beings. Hopefully the YouTube Kid’s app will be soon launched in other countries as well.
