Video streaming service Netflix was tipped to ready a feature designed to offer short video snippets of children programmes, a move linked to an aim by the company to boost its appeal to more audiences and better compete with social media app TikTok.
Bloomberg reported the new option dubbed Kids Clips is expected to roll out for iOS users starting this week in several countries including the US, Canada and Australia.
The feature is said to come with a restriction on time spent by children, with an option to view ten or 20 clips at a time.
Kids Clips will reportedly include a selection of content tailored to children from Netflix’s current library.
The new feature is set to compete with TikTok which gained popularity with a vast variety of short-form video clips. The service introduced a “family safety mode” and screen time management options for parents in February 2020.
Netflix’s move follows attempts by other tech giants to introduce services aimed at younger audiences. In 2015, Google launched YouTube Kids which grants parents with control tools such as blocking certain videos and selecting type of content depending on their children’s age.
Meta (formerly Facebook) also mulled introducing a version of Instagram dedicated to children aged under 13 years but recently postponed its release due to a backlash over safety concerns.
