New year, new priorities, trends and challenges – pt 2
THE YEAR AHEAD: As we enter 2025, C21 asks leading content industry executives in the children’s sector about their predictions for the coming year, what the biggest trends will be, how the global economic downturn will continue to affect the industry and how it will fare in the new creator economy.
Sean Henry, VP of international content partnerships and content strategy, EMEA, Warner Bros Discovery
I expect to see more inclusive projects featuring neurodiversity and characters of varying abilities, a wider range of modern families being reflected and stories which focus on kindness and wellness for children. The anime genre is having a big resurgence, with kids exploring content from a wider variety of cultures and countries. I hope to see original IP with contemporary characters and stories as well as known IP coming from a variety of different sources including books, games or podcasts.
The economic crisis will continue to make it challenging for the kids’ entertainment industry and we have already seen the effects on production studios and on the distribution of animated kids’ content. We are still committed to commissioning and acquiring animation for kids aged 0-12. We anticipate having a steady stream of new content and recognise that one of the real advantages we have as a company is the strength and power of our franchises.
Creator-driven content is so important in the kids’ entertainment world. We have seen some of the biggest names in children’s entertainment start as YouTube creators. For us, this playground has become vital for discovering new talent and allows us to actively seek out creative individuals. As the creator economy grows, it leads to more competition in the industry which in turn pushes creativity.
Gia DeLaney, senior VP of global sales, kids and family, Boat Rocker Media
Youth-focused content, especially for young adults, remains hugely popular. You can see this trend in franchises like Get Even, Wednesday and Heartstoppers. I also think we’ll see a rise in the number of non-traditional content companies entering the programming space, offering new ways and opportunities to fund and greenlight shows. We have already seen this with companies like Crayola, Build-a-Bear and Toys R Us, which have all begun to either launch their own studios or commission their own content.
Broadcasters and streamers are playing it safe by either acquiring content that can attract established audiences, or by commissioning known IP or reboots with proven track records, because these properties provide stability and guaranteed income in uncertain financial times. We’re likely going to continue to see cautious spending across the industry, with broadcasters and streaming services focused on lower-risk investments and greater acquisitions. Those projects that are commissioned are likely to have more stakeholders involved as companies will be more willing to take a smaller piece of the pie for a lower investment and therefore lower risk. So, I think we’ll see lots more coproductions and collaborations in the next year.
YouTube is an incredibly useful tool for getting eyeballs on programmes, but what it doesn’t do is provide a sizeable revenue stream that gets these shows produced. This remains a huge issue because, in truth, a lot of what kids watch on YouTube is actually linear content – it’s that they’re watching it on a different platform. If YouTube continues to grow without proper funding models in place to compensate the production companies, then I think we’d inevitably see a decline in the quantity – not to mention the quality – of children’s content because there just won’t be the budgets to be able to pay for new shows to be made.
Andy Yeatman, CEO, Miraculous Corp USA and global operations
Since 2022, networks and streamers have reduced new content orders, depleting their libraries. In 2025, we may see demand stabilise or increase slightly, but I wouldn’t expect a dramatic recovery. Growth will likely be steady rather than exponential.
The preference for pre-existing IP is expected to continue, but I believe studios and platforms will start taking more risks on new IPs or adapting content from other fields. This shift is partly because reboots and sequels have had diminishing returns and also because much of the top IP has already been utilised. We might see series entering the market based on popular Roblox games, for example. Additionally, AI will have a significant impact on programming trends.
In 2025, I expect AI to impact kids’ content more than any other sector because of the perceived simplicity and formulaic nature of kids’ content. AI will enable creators and producers to reduce production time and costs, making it easier to bring content to market.
However, this lower barrier to entry will lead to an explosion of new content on open platforms like YouTube, TikTok and Roblox. Most of this new content will be low quality, but the increased volume will improve the odds of discovering standout hits. AI-driven production will also reinforce the value of high-quality IP as it will continue to stand out amid an influx of inexpensive and mediocre offerings.
Emmanuèle Pétry, producer and head of international, Dandelooo
Unfortunately, the economic crisis has already severely hit independent companies. We will see more mergers and acquisitions, which will consolidate the biggest players such as Mediawan who now owns 80 companies, thus dominating the market, and probably more Chapter 11 situations.
During this challenging era and overall anxiety, companies need to reassure kids and parents with ‘refuge’ programmes. Therefore, I expect to see more reboots of old and classic brands, more book adaptations (and fewer originals) and more seasons of powerful and established brands. I also think there will be more anime-style programmes being developed in Europe in order to get a slice of that cake. Anime-style programmes now account for two-thirds of kids’ watch time overall.
YouTube continues to strengthen its position, making the wealthiest companies richer and making audiences lazier. I hope it will lead to strong lobbying and regulation obliging YouTube to invest part of its revenue into original production.
Bob Higgins, president, Trustbridge Entertainment
The most obvious challenge for 2025 is the scaling back of development deals and commissions from platforms and networks on a global basis. As these exhibitors pause and regroup, it’s creating a ripple effect on producers and studios that are cutting back on their development and/or hiring.
But this does create opportunity. While exhibitors have enough new content to satisfy their audiences right now, that will most likely not be the case in 12 to 18 months, and they will need compelling new characters and stories to hold the audience share. Producers who are able to move content/production forward during this dry spell will be in a much better negotiating position when the time comes.
I think commissioning and buying will continue to be slow well into 2025, but then the pipelines will be running dry and it will be months/years before development and new commissions can catch up to the need, so acquisition of new content will be in demand in late 2025 and 2026.
Marie McCann, senior director of children’s content, CBC Kids
I think a big casualty in this whole downturn has been innovation and creative risk-taking. With the emphasis on sure bets and established brands, I feel like we have seen less rule-breaking, boundary-bending content.
What is exciting, though, is that at least in Canada, we are seeing a new generation of creators pitching projects – these are often diverse creators with smaller companies that are taking advantage of available funding opportunities as well as digital platforms. Small is big.
Because discoverability is so important, the lure of well-established brands continues. Web-based properties like CoComelon, Blippi and Ms Rachel reach the first media users and are really turning traditional development on its head. Not only are broadcasters and users using YouTube as a distribution channel but really it’s where they are finding new talent and brands.
Genevieve Dexter, founder and CEO, Serious Kids
There has been a huge decline in the number of commissioning broadcasters, added to which the parameters set by the remaining commissioners are difficult to satisfy. For example, an increase in requested rights coupled with reduced investment or the requirement of a fully fleshed out finance plan, demonstrating a ‘last in’ greenlight guarantee.
If you are able to solve those puzzles by sourcing venture capital, taking the risk where others are unable or you are very good at coproduction finance, then that is the opportunity presented. Additionally, there is an overwhelming desire for established IP rather than original content; however, if you are able to present properties that are a no-brainer from a talent line-up perspective, immediately appealing either because they are tapping into a particular trend or just a brilliantly simple idea that immediately resonates, then you still have an opportunity.
The banning of interest-based advertising for kids has really hit the industry hard and companies previously happily developing and living on YouTube have had to move to mainstream TV. Although YouTube grows and grows, it does not bring a lot of cash into kids’ TV. The relative income from kids’ advertising on YouTube expressed as a percentage of overall revenue is tiny.
Some companies are circumventing this by setting up their own advertising sales teams, but it takes time to get the permission to do this from YouTube. If we could return to a more monitored monetisation model, it would be huge benefit for the industry and channels could stream simultaneously on YouTube as a form of worldwide web for content. Unfortunately, the response of the majors to regulation is to walk away from kids’ programming if they can.
Monica Levy, co-chief of distribution, Federation Kids & Family
If 2025 is anything like 2024, our opportunities are large and wide for selling readymade shows. Strangely enough, Federation had an incredible year for sales revenue. On the other hand, putting together coproductions for kids, both live-action and animation, has proved challenging the last couple of years and unfortunately it looks as if this will continue into 2025.
Networks are looking for recognisable names and faces (such as influencers, TikTok or YouTube stars) to brand kids’ shows. The creator has become as, if not more, important as the creation. On a more concerning note, it is quite worrisome that the attention span of our young generation is becoming shorter and shorter and has become total ‘bitesize,’ reducing our collective potential to fully develop meaningful ideas.
Adriano Schmid, VP of content, PBS Kids
Something we’ve been hearing a lot is how 11-minute narratives might be too long for today’s audience and that attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. But the reality is that kids go to each platform expecting a different experience. They can spend an hour playing a game or exploring a world, or two minutes bouncing and singing a song. Flexibility in content is more imperative today, perhaps. At the end of the day, if the content is engaging, kids will stick with the stories and characters.
We hear from parents and educators about how kids’ social skills have been affected since Covid-19 and the growing prevalence of interaction through screens in their lives. So one opportunity is for gaming platforms to help remediate that by modelling positive social interactions, giving kids the tools to go out in the real world with a better understanding of the whats and hows of dealing with each other.
Ellen Doherty, chief creative officer, Fred Rogers Productions
As an innately optimistic person, I’ll say that [in 2025] challenges can be opportunities. If commissioning stays tight, give energy to experimentation and explore new ideas, production models and platforms.
It feels like there’s an uptick in interest in shortform content now as more distributors see value in using YouTube and other platforms to test market content ‘in the wild.’ As a non-profit, our strategy is always somewhat flexible because our goals are driven by mission — we develop and produce projects large and small, for all platforms, meeting kids where they are.
Live from Content Americas
