A US kids streaming market snapshot

Why it is the topic trending:

• SVOD Market Growth Driven by Kids’ Content: The topic is trending because it highlights the significant role of kids’ content in driving the growth of the Subscription Video on Demand (SVOD) market in the US. With near-universal SVOD adoption in households with children, the performance of kids’ shows is a key indicator for the streaming industry.

• New Data from Circana: The article presents recent data from Circana, a reputable media research firm, making it a timely and data-driven analysis of current trends in the kids’ streaming market.

• The article, featuring insights from Circana’s VP and Media Entertainment industry advisor John Buffone, examines the US kids’ streaming market. It reveals that households with children are major drivers of SVOD growth, with 97% subscribing to streaming services. The article emphasizes that, similar to linear TV, established franchises dominate the top kids’ series on SVOD platforms, a trend expected to continue throughout 2025.

• High SVOD Penetration: 90% of US households with internet access subscribe to at least one SVOD service.

• Average SVOD Subscriptions: The average US household with internet access subscribes to five SVOD services. (Note: This slightly contradicts the earlier search result suggesting four SVOD services and $61 monthly spend – it is important to note the slight discrepancy, but for this summary, we will rely on the article’s “five” service figure.)

• Kids’ Content Driving Growth: Households with children under 18 are key drivers of SVOD

• Higher Subscription Rates in Households with Kids: Households with children tend to subscribe to more SVOD services on average compared to households without children.  

• Franchise Dominance: Top-performing kids’ series on SVOD platforms are mostly established franchises, mirroring linear TV trends.

• Trend Continuity in 2025: The dominance of established franchises in kids’ streaming is expected to continue throughout 2025.

• Kids’ content is a crucial factor in the robust growth of the SVOD market in the US. Households with children are leading the charge in SVOD adoption and are drawn to familiar franchises, indicating stability and predictability in the kids’ streaming space for 2025.

Description of the Trend (Kids’ Content SVOD Powerhouse):

• This trend describes the significant and sustained impact of kids’ content in driving the expansion and success of the Subscription Video on Demand (SVOD) market. It highlights how families with children are a core subscriber base for SVOD services, attracted by the availability of kids’ programming, particularly established franchises.

What is Consumer Motivation (Parents/Household Motivation):

• Kids’ Entertainment Needs: Parents are motivated to subscribe to SVOD services to provide entertainment and educational content for their children.

• Convenience and On-Demand Access: SVODs offer convenient, on-demand access to a wide variety of kids’ shows, fitting busy family schedules.  

• Value for Family Entertainment: SVOD subscriptions are perceived as providing good value for family entertainment, offering a large library of content for a monthly fee.

• Familiar Franchises for Kids: Parents often seek out familiar franchises and trusted brands in kids’ entertainment that they know their children will enjoy and that may have educational value.

What is Driving the Trend:

• Availability of Kids’ Content on SVODs: SVOD platforms have invested heavily in acquiring and producing kids’ content to attract families.  

• Cord-Cutting Trend: Families are increasingly cutting the cord from traditional cable TV and migrating to streaming services for more flexible and cost-effective entertainment options.

• Appeal of Franchises: Established kids’ franchises offer a sense of familiarity, quality, and pre-existing fan bases, making them reliable drivers of viewership.  

• Parental Demand for “Safe” Content: Parents often prefer SVODs for kids’ content because they offer curated and often ad-free environments, perceived as safer and more appropriate for children than some content on platforms like YouTube.

What is Motivation Beyond the Trend:

• Child Development and Education: Parents are fundamentally motivated to provide enriching and educational experiences for their children, and kids’ content on SVODs can fulfill this need.

• Family Bonding and Shared Entertainment: Watching kids’ shows can be a family bonding activity, providing shared entertainment experiences for parents and children.  

• Peace of Mind and Convenience for Parents: Having access to on-demand kids’ entertainment provides parents with a convenient way to occupy and entertain their children, offering moments of respite in busy family life.

Description of Consumers Article is Referring to (US Households with Internet Access, Specifically Families with Children):

• Age: Primarily adults aged 25-54 (parents), with a focus on households with children under 18.

• Gender: Both genders, representing parents and household decision-makers.

• Income: Broad income range, as SVOD adoption is widespread across income levels, although subscription stacking might be more prevalent in middle to upper-income households.

• Lifestyle: Families with children, likely juggling work, childcare, and household responsibilities. They value convenience, family-friendly entertainment options, and are digitally connected, utilizing internet and streaming services for entertainment.

• Kids’ content is a cornerstone of the US SVOD market, with households with children being super-subscribers.

• Established franchises are key drivers of viewership and subscriber acquisition in the kids’ SVOD space.  

• The trend suggests a stable and predictable landscape for kids’ streaming in 2025, with franchise content continuing to be a safe bet for SVOD platforms.  

Implications for Brands (SVOD Platforms, Content Producers, Franchises):

• Invest in Kids’ Franchises: SVOD platforms should continue to invest in acquiring and developing content based on established kids’ franchises to attract and retain families.

• Franchise Expansion Strategy: Content producers should focus on developing and expanding popular kids’ franchises across SVOD platforms.

• Target Family Demographics: SVOD marketing strategies should specifically target households with children, highlighting the availability of kids’ content and family-friendly features.

• Franchise Merchandising Opportunities: The popularity of kids’ franchises on SVODs creates further merchandising and licensing opportunities for associated brands.

• Dominance of Franchise Entertainment for Kids: Society may see a continued dominance of franchise-based entertainment for children, potentially impacting the diversity and originality of kids’ content available.

• Shifting Media Consumption for Families: Families are increasingly orienting their media consumption around SVOD services, potentially diminishing the role of traditional linear TV in children’s entertainment.

• Digitalization of Childhood Entertainment: Childhood entertainment is becoming increasingly digitalized and on-demand, with SVODs playing a central role in shaping children’s media experiences.  

Implications for Consumers (Parents, Families):

• Wide Access to Kids’ Content: Parents and families will continue to have wide access to a vast library of kids’ content through SVOD services.

• Familiar and Trusted Brands: Families can rely on established franchises for predictable and generally safe entertainment options for their children.

• Subscription Costs for Families: Households with children may face higher subscription costs as they tend to subscribe to more SVOD services to meet their family’s entertainment needs.

• Potential for Content Overload: The abundance of kids’ content on SVODs may lead to concerns about screen time and content overload for children.

• Continued SVOD Growth Driven by Kids’ Content: Kids’ content will remain a significant growth driver for the SVOD market in the foreseeable future.

• Franchise Wars in Streaming: Competition for top kids’ franchises will intensify among SVOD platforms, leading to potential “franchise wars” in the streaming space.

• Personalization and Curation for Kids: SVOD platforms may further enhance personalization and curation features to help parents navigate the vast kids’ content libraries and find age-appropriate and engaging programming.

• Expansion of Kids’ Content Formats: Expect experimentation with new content formats and interactive experiences within kids’ SVOD programming to further engage young audiences.

Consumer Trend (Family Entertainment Trend):

• Name: Family Stream Stack

• Detailed Description: This consumer trend describes the household practice of subscribing to multiple SVOD services (“stacking”) specifically to meet the diverse entertainment needs of families, with a significant emphasis on accessing a wide range of kids’ content. Families strategically build their “stream stack” to provide content for all household members, particularly children.

Consumer Sub Trend (Franchise Focus Trend):

• Name: Franchise Family Fuel

• Detailed Description: A sub-trend within “Family Stream Stack,” highlighting the key role of established kids’ franchises in attracting and retaining family SVOD subscribers. Families are actively seeking out SVOD services that offer access to well-known and trusted kids’ franchises, making franchise content a crucial driver of subscription decisions.

Big Social Trend (Household Media Center Trend):

• Name: Home Entertainment Hub

• Detailed Description: The broader social trend of the home evolving into the primary entertainment hub for families, with SVOD services becoming central to this home entertainment ecosystem. Families are increasingly relying on their home internet and streaming subscriptions for a wide range of entertainment, education, and leisure activities.

Worldwide Social Trend (Global Family Streaming Trend):

• Name: Global Kid-Stream Boom

• Detailed Description: While the article focuses on the US, the underlying trend of kids’ content driving streaming growth is a global phenomenon. Worldwide, families are increasingly adopting SVOD services for children’s entertainment, making kids’ content a major driver of the global streaming market expansion.

Social Drive (Human Motivation Trend):

• Name: Family Fulfillment & Child-Centric Entertainment

• Detailed Description: The underlying human drive is parents’ deep-seated motivation to provide for their families’ needs and prioritize their children’s well-being and happiness, including access to enriching and enjoyable entertainment. This drive fuels the demand for family-friendly SVOD services and kids’ content.

Learnings for Brands to Use in 2025 (for SVOD Platforms, Content Producers, Franchises):

• Franchises are King (and Queen): Recognize the continued dominance of established kids’ franchises and prioritize acquiring, developing, and expanding these properties.

• Family Bundling & Value Propositions: Develop family-focused subscription bundles and value propositions that cater to households with children, highlighting the breadth of kids’ content.

• Curate and Recommend Kids’ Content: Invest in robust content curation and recommendation systems to help parents easily discover age-appropriate and engaging shows for their children.

• Mobile and Tablet Optimization: Ensure kids’ content is optimized for viewing on tablets and mobile devices, as these are popular devices for children’s screen time.

• Parental Controls and Safety Features: Promote and enhance parental controls and safety features to reassure parents about the appropriateness and safety of kids’ content on SVOD platforms.

Strategy Recommendations for Brands to Follow in 2025 (for SVOD Platforms, Content Producers, Franchises):

• Aggressively Pursue Top Franchises: SVOD platforms should aggressively compete for the rights to popular and evergreen kids’ franchises.

• Invest in Franchise Extensions & Spinoffs: Content producers should explore opportunities to create extensions, spinoffs, and reboots of successful kids’ franchises for SVOD platforms.

• Develop Interactive & Educational Content: Experiment with interactive content formats and educational programming within kids’ franchises to enhance engagement and perceived value for parents.

• Co-Marketing with Toy & Merchandise Partners: Leverage co-marketing partnerships with toy and merchandise companies associated with popular kids’ franchises to cross-promote content and products.

• Data-Driven Franchise Strategy: Utilize data analytics to understand which franchises are performing best and tailor content acquisition and development strategies accordingly.

Final Sentence (Key Concept):

• The “Kids’ Content SVOD Powerhouse” trend confirms that kids’ programming, particularly established franchises, is a cornerstone of the SVOD market, driving subscriber growth and shaping the family streaming landscape in the US.

What Brands & Companies Should Do in 2025 to Benefit from Trend and How to Do It:

Brands and companies in the SVOD and kids’ entertainment sectors should strategically leverage the “Kids’ Content SVOD Powerhouse” trend in 2025 to maximize subscriber growth and content engagement by:

• Prioritizing franchise content investment: Make substantial investments in acquiring, licensing, and producing content based on established and beloved kids’ franchises.

• Creating family-centric platform experiences: Design SVOD platforms and user interfaces with families in mind, making it easy for parents to find and manage kids’ content.

• Developing comprehensive franchise ecosystems: Expand beyond just video content to create broader franchise ecosystems that include interactive experiences, merchandise, and community engagement.

• Targeting parents in marketing efforts: Tailor marketing campaigns to directly address parents’ needs and motivations for choosing SVOD services for their children, highlighting safety, educational value, and franchise offerings.

• Continuously analyzing performance data: Utilize data analytics to track the performance of kids’ content, understand evolving family viewing habits, and refine content strategies for sustained success.

• Core Trend: Kids’ Content SVOD Powerhouse – Kids’ programming is a dominant force driving SVOD market growth and family subscriptions.

• Core Strategy: Franchise-Focused Family Platform Building – SVOD platforms should prioritize franchise content and build family-centric platforms to capitalize on this trend.

• Core Industry Trend: SVOD as Family Entertainment Hub – SVODs are solidifying their position as the central hub for family entertainment, especially for kids’ content.

• Core Consumer Motivation: Family Fulfillment through Entertainment – Parents are motivated by providing enriching and enjoyable entertainment experiences for their children, making SVODs a valuable tool for family fulfillment.

The “Kids’ Content SVOD Powerhouse” trend underscores the enduring importance of kids’ entertainment in the media landscape, particularly in the rapidly growing SVOD market. By recognizing the power of franchises, catering to family needs, and strategically investing in kids’ content, SVOD platforms and content creators can thrive in this dynamic and essential segment of the streaming industry in 2025 and beyond.

Sources and related content