TVKIDS
Dominique Neudecker, VP of kids and family for TOGGO at Germany’s Super RTL, discussed her content strategy at the TV Kids Festival today before being presented with the TV Kids Pioneer Award.
Neudecker, a veteran of the kids’ business who joined Super RTL last year, took part in a keynote conversation with TV Kids’ Kristin Brzoznowski that you can watch here.
“At TOGGO, we have a highly professional team of passionate kids’ experts—always connected with our audience,” Neudecker said of the continued strength of the brand. “We’ve always adapted our offerings to reflect the changing habits and preferences of kids.”
For example, the channel launched TOGGO GG for gaming fans, while TOGGO Hypezeit is a weekly trend show covering topics like pop culture and social media. “Thanks to our team’s innovative ideas and quick implementation, TOGGO continues to deliver the content young audiences want. Since TOGGO’s launch almost 25 years ago, it has become so much more than just a TV umbrella brand.”
In an increasingly competitive environment, Super RTL has focused on a multiplatform approach, Neudecker said. “Next to linear TV, we invested heavily in building a proper kids’ web business to distribute our content via our digital platforms and apps, as well as the major third-party digital platforms. We launched a radio channel for kids and families. We travel through various German cities with our TOGGO Tour. We have a footprint in the retail business through our strong consumer-product business. Our motto is: Wherever the kids go, we are there with the TOGGO brand, being the number one go-to destination. We are the only German player to serve such a broad range of platforms. Our recent performance success proves that we’re on the right track. In the TV sector, we have been the market leader among kids aged 3 to 13 for many years, including in 2024, even though the German market is highly competitive with KiKA and competitors like Disney and Nickelodeon. In the digital space, we’ve also seen strong growth. Over the past 12 months our social media followers have increased by 130 percent.”
Super RTL’s strategy shifts also included folding Toggolino, for preschool audiences, into TOGGO, with Neudecker noting that a “one-brand” strategy “is the best way to succeed in a more fragmented and complex market. Kids get to know and love the brand early on and can rely on TOGGO for guidance in today’s complex variety of content at every stage of their age. TOGGO now represents RTL Deutschland’s unified children’s offering. It’s instantly recognizable—whether on our own TOGGO platforms or, for example, on our streaming service, RTL+. When parents see us, they immediately know it’s a safe digital space for their kids.”
TOGGO broadly targets the 3-to-13 set, with big IP–PAW Patrol, SpongeBob SquarePants and Angelo Rules, among others—key to the lineup. “For older kids, our focus shifts more toward live-action formats—both fiction and factual,” Neudecker said.
Animation dominates, but live-action is a growth area, she said, especially for reaching pre-teen audiences. And while the lineup is heavily acquired, originals are paramount. “We believe in the relevance of both originals and acquisitions—as long as everything mirrors the daily life of today’s kids. Original content with local relevance is a great way to stand out from competitors and offer young audiences something unique, exclusively accessible on our TOGGO-branded platforms. TOGGO originals also play a key role on digital platforms; we developed TOGGO GG and TOGGO Hypezeit specifically for our on-demand platforms and YouTube. The incredible response inspired us to broadcast the format on linear TV for the first time this year. Additionally, RTL+, our streaming service, has opened up exciting new opportunities, with bigger budgets allowing us to produce more high-quality originals.”
Addressing what’s on her wish list, Neudecker said she’s looking for known IP but is also open to breakthrough new ideas. “Characters must be authentic and relatable with distinct personalities. Genres like comedy and big adventures remain a key priority. We believe in building cultural bridges through strong, diverse and optimistic storytelling. We are always open to getting inspired and impressed by all those passionate and highly talented producers out there.”
Neudecker then discussed how Super RTL is using its various platforms to meet kids where they are—but noted that linear TV remains a strong component of the company’s ecosystem. “In the digital space, our team is constantly working to expand our technical reach and make our products available on even more platforms. Kids love short content and games, so another part of our strategy is that we’re creating content specifically designed for digital consumption to reach new audiences and increase opportunities to bond with the brand. In addition to TV, radio and digital TOGGO platforms, we have the kids’ section of RTL+. This is also a very important touchpoint based on an SVOD business model, offering new opportunities to engage with kids. We have TOGGO Tour, which is highly successful. Other important touchpoints are realized by our team at RTL Consumer Products. They ensure that TOGGO fans can bring their beloved characters from our series into their homes through toys or other licensed products. Our [consumer products] business also includes audiobooks, which we can produce ourselves through an in-house audio label. All those touchpoints give us the chance to reach new audiences and draw them into the growing TOGGO universe. TOGGO is wherever the kids are.”
