Canadians, including kids aged two to 17, are increasingly gravitating towards subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) platforms. From animated series to family-friendly films, these platforms provide a vast array of content tailored specifically for children. That’s the latest from an MTM Jr. report that delves into the latest trends in kids’ SVOD consumption among the anglophone population.
The report says 78% of anglophone households subscribe to at least one SVOD service, while households with children are 17% more likely to subscribe to SVOD services than the average anglophone household (91% vs 78%). Nearly half of anglophone households (45%) subscribe to both an SVOD service and a paid TV. One in four (26%) opt solely for an SVOD subscription. Four in five kids aged two to 17 (81%) watch SVOD content monthly, which is consistent across age groups and gender. Children are 17% less likely to watch linear TV than they are to watch SVOD services (69% vs 83%).
Four-fifths of SVOD kid viewers (80%) watch content on a connected TV. Tablets are the second-most popular device for watching SVOD services (35%), however, devices used for viewing SVOD content differ depending on age and gender. Younger kids are more likely to use a tablet to watch SVODs while older kids are more inclined to watch on a computer or smartphone. Boys are somewhat more likely than girls to watch SVOD content on connected TVs (82% vs 78%), while girls are more likely than boys to watch content either on a tablet (37% vs 33%), computer (29% vs 21%) or smartphone (29% vs 20%).
Netflix is the most popular SVOD service in terms of household subscriptions. More than three-quarters of children (77%) have access to a Netflix subscription. That said, MTM Jr. is also seeing growth in other services, such as Amazon Prime Video (65%) and Disney+ (57%). Nine in 10 kid SVOD viewers (91%) watch movies every month. Almost all anglophone kids (98%) watch content in English, while three in 10 (29%) watch content in French.
MTM Jr, a division of the Media Technology Monitor, is an annual youth media study. Questions were asked to an online panel of 1,972 Canadian households split equally among anglophones and francophones. Parents answered the first part of the survey based on technology in the home, such as TV service and Netflix subscriptions. The second portion of the survey consisted of questions regarding the media habits of children between the ages of two to 17 in the home. Parents responded for the children aged two to 11 living in the household and were asked to provide consent for teenagers within the household to respond on their own behalf. Of the 1,972 households surveyed, data for 2,798 children was collected. MTM Jr. is a product of CBC/Radio Canada Research and data was collected by Ad hoc Research between February 13 and February 27 this year.
