The Kidoodle.TV Story

Brenda Bisner, the chief content officer at Kidoodle.TV, provided a deep dive into the AVOD platform’s strategy at the TV Kids Festival.

Bisner was interviewed by Kristin Brzoznowski, executive editor of TV Kids and World Screen, who opened the conversation by asking her how the Safe Streaming platform has evolved since its launch. “It’s been an incredible journey” since the service’s arrival in 2012. “We’ve stepped up as a leader in the Safe Streaming movement. Safe Streaming is fundamentally at the core of who and what we are and what we do. Our AVOD business model ensures that there’s no barrier to entry.”

Kidoodle.TV caters to kids under 12 in 160-plus markets. “As families continue to find us and continue to see issues on other streaming sites that they may or may not be on, we’re becoming more useful and relevant in their lives as a go-to destination.”

Usage is skyrocketing, Bisner said, with growth of more than 3,200 percent to 12 million monthly active users.

Safe Streaming—a term the company has trademarked—is central to its proposition. “We believe in keeping kids safe. That’s what we care about. It’s a commitment we have to providing a safe, accessible, quality experience. Our user experience alone is better than anything else in the business. We take pride in leading the way in the industry. It’s important work that needs to be done.”

On serving the needs of young ones during the pandemic, Bisner pointed to the crucial role of data, with Kidoodle.TV commissioning an annual study, It Takes a (Digital) Village, to understand parental concerns, co-viewing and device usage (with the use of connected TVs, in particular, on the rise). Amid COVID-19, recreational screen time was about 63 percent and educational screen time 61 percent. “As digital content consumption replaces other in-person [methods] of learning, interaction and activity,” educational screen-time levels will continue to be high, she said. “We’re looking to integrate the kind of content that families are looking for: that could be educational, it could be comedy, music, movement, mindfulness.”

The platform currently houses more than 25,000 episodes, “and we’re closing 10 to 12 deals a week. It’s really important that we remain relevant and fresh and that our audience is having a great experience every time. The average retention on the channel is about 90 minutes. Things from PAW Patrol to Peppa Pig to the greatest gamers or the wonderful content from our friends at Moonbug and pocket.watch and hundreds of other great providers. We say, Welcome to the Kidoodle.TV family, because we’re not just taking on shows and slapping them on the channel. We integrate with each partner, and the brands with a very human approach.”

That human approach is central to the company’s creative quality-control process. “We watch every single second to make sure it adheres to our Safe Streaming standards and guidelines. We want to provide that level of trust.”

Content acquisitions will continue to increase, Bisner said. “We’re able to partner with people in a much larger capacity than a channel that serves one particular niche.”

Asked about the overall acquisition strategy, Bisner noted, “We’re a safe alternative to anything else out there, and we are an additional revenue stream to any existing AVOD business you have. We’re looking at partners that have great content that people care about, that we care about, and that care about the important work we’re doing. It’s not just a one-way street for us. The homework around the work we do, how that partner can contribute and be part of this movement, is something we do look at. Knowing people are making money with our channel and lots of it, the strategy is around monitoring the needs of kids. When COVID struck, it was gathering all the great educational content that teachers were sending kids to on sites that were not intended for children. We brought that on in addition to everything else we had. We’re always going to be looking at that sector because it’s important that parents have that go-to. Being a mom myself, oftentimes it wasn’t, I want an educational show; it was, I want to dance or let’s meditate. So we’re looking at those unique opportunities. Diversity, I can’t stress it enough. We are serving kids in a lot of different countries, so we’re looking at culturally relevant content. We’re about to expand with a meaningful relationship in India right now. The unicorns—the PAW Patrols, the Peppas—we’ll always have those brands, but we can also uncover those gems in the marketplace. Some of these content providers and brand owners are struggling to get traditional broadcast deals struck. We’re able to offer that and get them monetizing and great awareness in a meaningful place because families know they can trust us.”

Speaking further about how Kidoodle.TV is a great partner to content owners, Bisner stressed the Safe Streaming environment. “When you’re making content for children, there’s a moral obligation to keep kids safe. Where we’re placing our content should be considered. This is a safe place. We’re a safe alternative, we pay a competitive CPM, we’re non-exclusive, we’re a meaningful place to put content and have revenue come in and understand that it’s reaching a certain number of children every month.”

Discussing advertisers, Bisner noted, “It’s a world where brand safety and reputation is increasingly at stake. How are you getting to kids? We’re adhering to the highest letter of the law when it comes to keeping kids safe, from COPPA to GDPR-K, and we’ve really been ahead of the curve.”

The platform’s creative review process is proprietary. “We’ve scaled it. Every single advert is also watched before it goes live on the channel, not just all the content. We’re pre-screening before things even go live on the channel. It provides the industry with a safe solution for their brands, and advertisers can also leverage child-directed services like ours to reach our highly engaged families.”

On the service’s plans for more originals after unveiling its first in 2020, Bisner said, “We’ll be making some large announcements! We’re very proud of our first original. We took a viral success and were able to turn it into something even bigger. With that first entry point, we learned a lot and we’ve been studying the landscape.”

On the overall plan for the next 8 to 12 months, Bisner said. “It’s been an incredible year of growth. The work will continue to expand our Safe Streaming offering and what that can mean to parents, to increase our research studies to make sure we are getting the right data in the most relevant way that we can bring to families and kids. We’re going to continue to collect great shows around the globe and bring them to our service. We’ll scale and hire more. There will be advancements in some of our product. Our user experience is one of the best in the business and we’ll keep evolving that to stay at the top of the market. Our marketing efforts will increase this year as well. We’re in it to keep being that go-to destination. We’ve proven there’s a need for this. A lot of people are talking about safety now. We’ll be focusing on new ways to evaluate the needs of our families, so we can meet them where they are, which is really important to us.”