Sky Kids app adds games to streaming line-up
David Farnor | On 20, Oct 2017
Sky is bulking out its Sky Kids app with a host of games inspired by TV shows.
Games featuring their favourite characters, including SpongeBob SquarePants, Peppa Pig and Ben 10, are now available to download. Free to Sky customers, the app hosts over 4,500 episodes to watch, including Sky Original Production Big Cats: Wild Files and Aliens Love Underpants And…, as well as YouTube hits such as Little Baby Bum and popular kids’ shows from Boomerang, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Nicktoons, Nick Jr and Baby TV. Little ones can now play chess with the help of SpongeBob, test their memory with Peppa and have a go at target practice with Henry Danger.
Other new games are on the way include The Amazing World of Gumball, Scooby-Doo, Adventure Time and Sky Kids Art Studio, full of creative tools, arty ideas and lots of virtual glitter, plus a range of games featuring the Sky Buddies, characters which live on the app and allow parents to create personalised, age tailored profiles for their kids.
Indeed, dedicated, personalised kids’ platforms are increasingly the norm for the online streaming world, from Netflix and YouTube to subscription service Hopster. Sky’s app has no adverts, with child able to have an age profile set, so they can only access the content that’s right for them. A Sleep Mode also lets adults choose when the app will automatically switch off.
Offline access is also vital for an on-the-go generation, particularly as parents try to avoid their kids running expensive data bills. Like its TV shows, the Sky Kids app also allows certain customers to download games for offline usage.
Lucy Murphy, Sky’s head of kids content, says: “Children and parents have been loving the Sky Kids app, with over half a million registering to use it since it launched last year. It’s a great way to keep kids entertained, and now with new games to play and more being added every month, they have another fun way to dive into the worlds of their favourite characters. And as mums and dads know that it’s a safe and secure environment, everyone’s happy.”
The investment and development of the app appears to be paying off: kids’ content was downloaded a record 52 million times in August.