The BBC is bringing together its children’s output into a dedicated version of the iPlayer.
Alice Webb, director of BBC Children’s told a gathering in Salford that it would launch in 2016 as an app for Apple and Android mobiles and tablets. It’s part of a vision dubbed the Big Digital Plan for Children.
The BBC has spoken to industry experts, academics and the children themselves.
“Despite all the talk about any place, any where, 89% of children still prefer to watch TV on TV – the big box in the corner – and it’s the device kids would miss most, unless you’re over 12, when the mobile phone firmly takes over”.
75% of children have access to a tablet at home and over 50% of primary school age children use social media.
The BBC is already the leading children’s broadcaster in the UK, reaching 58% of 6-12 year olds and 82% of 0-6s with our TV and online content each month. In 2014, over 6,000 hours of the content that aired on our channels was home-grown, UK-produced original content.
However, children’s TV has emerged as a new area for the pay-TV sector; Netflix has a sizeable children’s section, like the BBC ad free, and Sky has just hired its first head of children’s.
