Tag: YouTube

What do our early teens do in the digital shadows?

The parent of children entering their teens soon learn they are operating in an environment fraught with hidden dangers.

We can be reasonably certain teenagers do not turn into vampires, but what 12 to 14 year olds do in the digital shadows should be one of the hazards on parents’ danger lists.

Last week, funding agencies NZ on Air and Te Māngai Pāho released the results of research – undertaken by Verian on their behalf – that provides numerous insights into children’s media use. It is part of the ‘Where Are The Audiences?’ series of studies that provide broadcasters and content providers with invaluable information that can inform future inputs and outputs.

The research is based on insights from media diaries to capture children’s media use across a week, 20 two-hour in-home interviews in five centres across the country, and a quantitative survey of 1024 parents and their children. You can access the reports here.

Among the findings was a clear need to do more to attract early teens and their younger siblings to local content. They are more drawn to trendy offerings on international platforms, particularly YouTube.

As a result, NZ On Air has announced the launch of a new hub for local children’s content on YouTube and YouTube Kids called KIDOGO.

Content funded by both agencies can now be found on two YouTube channels aimed at distinct age ranges. KIDOGO Junior has content for pre-schoolers, while KIDOGO is aimed at primary-school kids. The channels provide an additional avenue for content discovery, complementing local platforms.

The logic appears to be that, if children are attracted to local content while at primary school, they will continue that interest into their teens and beyond. It is sound thinking.

The research also contains warning signs over unsupervised online activity as children get older and enter their teenage years. Continue reading “What do our early teens do in the digital shadows?” →

How crunchy are the Herald NOW numbers?

Let me say at the outset: I like NZME’s video breakfast show Herald Now.

It has the hallmarks of a serious news programme designed to inform me at the start of the day, and the relaxed manner of its host Ryan Bridge belies his skill in asking questions that put interviewees on the spot.

It has the ability to attract newsmakers from the Prime Minister and former judges to sports stars and social workers in Gaza. Its rotating list of panellists spans a useful social spectrum.

Ryan Bridge plays a key role in the show’s success but, even when he is not there, the format retains its appeal. Last week, seasoned television journalist Garth Bray (now with NZME’s BusinessDesk) was a quality stand-in who maintained the same pace and inquisitive style.

So, I was not surprised when NZME crowed that the show has attracted 2.4 million views in July. Well, that was the number from one survey source but it could include double-ups  where the same people watched on different platforms. By another measure, the programme has a million ‘unique viewers’ a month.

Herald Now screens on the Herald’s digital platforms and on YouTube. I watch it through the latter on the tv set in our lounge. And that is what roused my curiosity over the audience statistic proudly announced by NZME. When I logged onto the programme on YouTube one day last week it told me there were 407 other viewers. On another day, the number was about 1400. That suggests that the vast majority view it on the Herald’s platforms.

Fair enough, but what does either Herald Now audience survey number actually tell us? Continue reading “How crunchy are the Herald NOW numbers?” →

TVNZ’s digital war calls for urgent reinforcements

Like it or not, the Government must step up and help Television New Zealand compete in the fight for its life.

The state-owned broadcaster is in what military strategists would call a perilous situation: With weakened supply lines, it is facing enemies on both flanks and a pincer movement that could squeeze the life out of it.

On one flank it has Sky TV, which last week pulled off a brilliant tactical move in which it was effectively gifted the valuable brand equity that continues to reside in Three despite its financial woes.

On the other flank are streaming services which – in spite of fighting their own battle royal – take increasing numbers of viewers from traditional providers.

The pincer movement could place TVNZ in an existential crisis within an alarmingly short period of time Continue reading “TVNZ’s digital war calls for urgent reinforcements” →