Business Wire/AP
- One of Netflix's most popular shows is a children's animated series called "CoComelon."
- In just the first half of 2023, "CoComelon" was watched for 601 million hours.
- Still, streaming platforms are struggling to bring in young viewers as more children turn to YouTube.
Although Netflix has spent years investing heavily in original streaming content, one of the streaming giant's most popular shows right now is a children's animated series that continues to air on YouTube called "CoComelon."
In just the first half of 2023, "CoComelon," and its six seasons currently on Netflix, were watched for 601 million hours, Business Insider senior correspondent Katie Notopoulos noted. That's more than the watch time of all four seasons of "Stranger Things" combined.
But despite the show's wild popularity, Netflix continues to struggle to bring in younger viewers, new data shows. Streaming giants are trying to figure out what kind of content will attract these youth viewers, a demographic that's key to securing and retaining subscribers.
Nielsen data on Netflix's streaming viewership showed that viewers 2- to 11 years old made up 21% of its audience in September. That's four percent less than the 25% Netflix had in September 2021, according to The Wall Street Journal.
YouTube, on the other hand, continues to build its younger audience.
2- to 11-year-old YouTube viewers increased from 29.4% to 33% in that same period, the Journal reported.
YouTube's stronghold on young viewers can partly be attributed to the site's offering of short-form content.
"These viewers are watching on their iPads or on other platforms that have moved to shorter and shorter segments, and it's a real issue for the streamers," Michael Hirsh, co-founder of WOW Unlimited Media, a Canadian animation company, told the Journal.
Streaming giants, including Netflix, Disney+, and Max, have been searching for ways to attract and retain youth viewers, as these audiences can convince families to keep their subscriptions.
Tom Ascheim, the former president of Warner Bros. Kids, Young Adults and Classics, told the Journal that families with children canceled their service at a lower rate than households without them.
One of the ways they compete in that realm is by capitalizing on hit shows like "CoComelon" and bringing them on to their streaming platforms.