YouTube Kids App Launches In Canada

Text and photos by Sonya Davidson

Watching videos on YouTube has become very popular over the past few years and every member of my family has gone on to stream something whether it be a clip from last night's Jimmy Fallon show that I've missed or hubby sourcing a "how to" video for some mechanical gadget gone wrong. The kids too are on there mostly for entertainment as they've heard of videos going viral from their friends.

I don't mind as they are a bit older but I still worry about what might pop up after they've viewed their originally searched content. What may seem harmless fun could potentially roll into the next video which has no filter.

YouTube has created the new YouTube Kids app designed for families with young kids and it's free! The app is built with parents and children in mind that makes it easier for kids to find the videos on topics they want to explore. The app has already launched in the United States and already has received more than 10 million downloads.

Content is accessible with mobile devices, tablets and on television (via Apple TV, Chromecast, game consoles, and smartTV) with internet connection. Content is still free but now your favourite Wild Kratts, Thomas the Tank Engine, Teletubbies, Baby Einstein, National Geographic Kids and more. There's also popular content created by Canadian producers and broadcasters including TVO Kids, Super Simple Songs, and Kids' CBC.

It's a safer and kid-friendly version of YouTube and easy to navigate to get to the channels and playlists they love. Even younger kids who are readers or printers can access content by voice search. Four categories for content includes shows, music, learning and explore.

"Adventures of Napkin Man is a huge favourite in our house for our six year old," says Simone, mom of three young kids at the media event earlier today. "It's fantastic to have a source just for kids. I don't have to worry about other content being too grown up. And if I'm busy making dinner I don't have to worry about what will pop up next I'm not worried. The littlest one watches Baby Einstein so we're all happy!"

Parents are still in control and can decide up front about the content that's available for viewing. You can adjust settings to restrict viewing and how you want your child to explore. In addition, the app also has a built-in timer option.

What I also love about this app is it currently is a signed-out experience with no ties to an account and YouTube has removed all features that are linked to an account like uploading, sharing, and liking.

As for content providers, Devon Thagard, co-creator, Super Simple Songs tells us that he and his partner had been creating content ever since YouTube had started. As English teachers overseas in Japan, he had found a need for teaching videos that were more fun and easy for his students.

They started making songs for their students but then YouTube came along and they thought it would be a good for parents and kids to be able to play the songs at home. They originally created very simple videos and their channel just kept growing in viewership. "We grew right along side with YouTube and eventually we decided to spend some money on animation and now we've got over 3 billion views worldwide." said Thagard. "YouTube kids is huge for us, we've been very eager for them to develop so when they launched last year in the US, we were really happy." 

Super Simple Songs uploads new content weekly for those they call "emerging speakers" weekly and works with an animation studio in Toronto. "We initially wanted songs to be able to teach young students learning English as a second language but at the same time we wanted the songs to be fun enough so that native speakers would enjoy them as well. They are mostly preschool and younger age categories."