An international study this year suggested that while only 9 per cent of pre-school children can tie their shoelaces, about 20 per cent can play an app on a smartphone. Financial Times 2011
The Apple iPhone is the market-leading smartphone. The iPhone and the associated App Store introduced the mainstream to mobile apps:–
“Small downloadable software applications used for games, tools and other features”
Launched in 2007, the iPhone is the market leader in smartphones with approximately 15% global share.
By comparison, handsets running Google’s Android software have about 10% share.
The iPhone has a disproportionately high share of mobile data traffic and its users tend to have a higher number of applications on their phones than rival smartphone customers.
According to ComScore, games remain the most popular activity amongst app users, closely followed by social networking.
Nosy Crow’s highly-acclaimed Cinderella app, for example, sells for £5.49, compared with prices of about 59p for many apps on the iTunes store.
There is a significant market for children’s educational apps. Children’s content makes up a significant proportion of the 100 top selling Apps.
Nearly half (47%) of the top 100selling Apps target preschool or elementary aged children.
60% of the top 25 Apps target toddler/preschool children – almost double the number that target adults (36%).
Children’s Apps are significantly cheaper than adult-targeted Apps. The weighted average for a child’s App is $1.14, compared to $5.77 for adults. It is reasonable to conclude that higher-priced educational Apps for children could be an undeserved market, presenting an opportunity for produces of high-quality, entertaining and educational Apps.
Best Kids Apps 2011
Build a Word
Age rating: 2+ Price $1.99
Miss Spider’s Tea Party
Age rating: 2+ Price $9.99
Dora the Explorer Truck Modz Build First Words: Deluxe Colouring Adventure and Drive
Age rating: 2+ Price $4.99
123 Colour HD
Age rating: 2+ Price $1.99
Age rating: 3+ Price $1.99
Super Why
Age rating: 3+ Price $2.99
Age rating: 2+ Price $4.99
Colourful Aquarium
Age rating: 2+ Price FREE
TV Operators
Mobile MUM
Educational Apps & Games
TV Operators PBS Kids Video for iPad (US only)
PBS Kids Video for iPad (US only)
PBS Kids Video for iPad FREE
“PBS KIDS Video for iPad” features more than 1,000 videos from over a dozen top PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! television series, including The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, Dinosaur Train, Super WHY!, Sesame Street and Wild Kratts. CHILD-SAFE – kids can easily browse and watch videos at home, on the road, or anywhere with a 3G or WiFi connection
PARENT RESOURCES NEW VIDEOS EVERY WEEK Every week, the app will introduce your child to a new “Weekly Pick,” a set of fun educational videos that will engage him or her in reading, science, math and more.
The app also includes features that you can access by sliding the “i-bar” to the right: •Access your local PBS station TV schedule •Tap the heart icon to add a video to your child’s favourites list •Share videos via email, Facebook or Twitter •Learn more about a TV series, such as intended learning age and learning goals •Download related apps from TV shows from iTunes
User Reviews... The PBS videos are chopped up into short segments requiring too much interruption for loading. The segments themselves are not always listed sequentially, further requiring a child to know which clip to select next if s/he wants to continue with the story. For preschoolers who can’t read yet this could be confusing.
Just clips – few, if any full episodes/ Drove my kids nuts.
Misleading app description – they say they have over 1000 videos but really the videos they offer for each program are 2-3 min clips. Each program has 1-2 full length episodes at most. LAME. Who wants to watch cartoon trailers? My kids don’t.
Installed, launched, deleted. I love PBS kids, but this is not useful at all. The app itself works great but there’s just no actual content longer than about 2 minutes and 45 seconds.
PBS Kids has released its largest offering of interactive math content aimed at kids aged 2-8 that includes 40 free cross-platform games that can be played both at home and in schools. Housed within the new PBS Kids Lab website, games centre around PBS media properties and links a set of games across platforms.
Competing Kids TV Operators ...
Cbeebies
Boomerang
Nickelodeon (Nick Jr.)
Competing Kids TV Operators ...
Boomerang
Cbeebies
Boomerang Subscription -2,99€/month for a 1 month subscription - 1,99€/month for a 3 month subscription - 1,49€/month for a 6 month subscription
Cbeebies FREE •Short video clips from a number of Cbeebies shows •Various Games
-Subscribe and receive the full 24hr Boomerang TV Channel -+ Interactive games and colouring
Nickelodeon (Nick Jr.)
$1.99
$1.99
$1.99
$0.99
$0.99
FREE
Pay-per-download and free, ad-supported applications “We know one of the things our audiences are doing is using mobile, in addition to watching our content on television, and we want to provide them with relevant content on all platforms that they are using for entertainment” -Steve Youngwood
Focus on iPhone and iPod touch
Expanding App Portfolio
The Kids’ Choice Awards application was designed to promote voting and the application links users into Nickelodeon’s mobile Web site, which as led to a significant increase in traffic and votes.
Nickelodeon has a diverse range of apps, mixing pay-per-download with free “lite” versions to support their ad-supported apps. Nick Jr. applications target parents and preschoolers, specifically for car trips or vacations. Free products will have sponsorship opportunities, such as banner media. Nickelodeon has bottom banners that the company puts on their applications, with buttons urging users to check out other Nickelodeon apps. Promotional efforts are often linked with on-air programming.
“Because of this effort, we’ve seen a more than 300% increase in daily downloads with some of our apps”
RTVE Clan (Spain)
RTVE Clan (Spain)
Clan FREE
iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad
Clan is a window to the best of the web content for children of RTVE and the Spanish TV kid's channel. A selection of shows like "Pocoyo", "Pokemon", "Noddy" and many more. Watch videos in spanish and english to help your children learn and colouring.
Mixture of short clips and full episodes. Connection required to view videos.
Mobile MUM Mobile MUM for iPad
Mobile MUM for iPad Mobile MUM Online Subscription Service FREE starter account $4.99 per month $34.99 per year
SUPPORTED DEVICES Android iPad iPhone TV Computers
“Mobile MUM is the first truly interactive kids’ environment for mobile devices that mixes the best in video content with games to help entertain and educate children”
Choose from hundreds of episodes from programmes like The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That, Pocoyo, Sid the Science Kid, Animal Atlas, Busytown Mysteries, Pajanimals, Chloe’s Closet & ...
User Reviews... It’s like having a TV channel streaming straight to your phone only on this channel there are no commercials and the programming is all parent approved.
So many shows! I can’t believe how many shows are available! There are a decent number for free, but there are more than a kid could ever watch with the subscription. This will get a workout on roadtrips!
Perfect!!! This is exactly what I’ve been searching for, for my 2½ yearold,
“It never ceases to amaze me at how these little kids can navigate their way around this new technology”
Mobile MUM works with Brightcove, a cloudbased online video platform who publish and distribute video on the Web. This gives Mobile MUM access to the most comprehensive and advanced features for publishing and distributing its video content, including a range of out-of-the-box mobile video solutions that make it easy to expand video initiatives to popular mobile devices and platforms.
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Educational Apps & Games Wheels on the Bus
2010 Parents’ Choice Gold Award winner – Parents’ Choice Foundation
Children’s Technology Review Editor’s Choice Award for Excellence in Design
2010 “Best Children’s App” KAPi Award – International Consumer Electronics Show Featured in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, San Francisco Chronic
Wheels on the Bus $0.99 Wheels on the Bus HD (iPad) $1.99 Wheels on the Bus (Android ) $1.99 Wheels on the Bus (iPhone)
Created by parents, Wheels on the Bus is a fun, interactive musical book, based on the popular children’s song. Encourages cognitive, language and motor development. Recommended ages: 1-3, 4-7
Duck Duck Moose has created 9 top-selling apps.
All 9 of the company’s products have won the Parent’s Choice Award and the Children’s Technology Review Editor’s Choice Award for Ecellence in Design.
Duck Duck Moose is a member of Moms with Apps, a collaborative group of familyfriendly developers seeking to promote quality apps for kids and families.
April 2011 Apple were under threat earlier this year for “inducing” children to spend hundreds of dollars of their parents’ money on in-app game purchases.
The issue is applicable to apps relying on a “freemium” business model, giving the game away for free on the App Store and relying on in-app purchases of virtual currency, extra levels, or other add-ons as a revenue stream. Smurfs’ Village and Tap Fish were two games that came under heavy criticism. Apple had to update their system, and have now introduced a separate password requirement for in-app purchases. It is important that parents are informed of how the in-app purchases work.