 Logo as of 2019 | |
 Screenshot of the home page of YouTube Kids | |
Type of site | Video hosting service |
|---|---|
| Founded | February 24, 2015 |
| Headquarters | United States |
| Area served | Worldwide (excluding blocked countries) |
| Owner | Alphabet, Inc. |
| Key people | Neal Mohan (CEO) |
| Industry |
|
| Parent | Google (through YouTube LLC) |
| URL | www |
| Advertising | Google AdSense |
| Current status | Active |
Content license | Proprietary |
YouTube Kids is an American video app and website for children developed by YouTube, a subsidiary of Google. The app provides a version of the service oriented solely towards children, with curated selections of content, parental control features, and filtering of videos deemed inappropriate for viewing by children under the age of 13, in accordance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits the regular YouTube app from advertising to children under the age of 13.[1]
First released on February 24, 2015, as an Android and iOS mobile app,[2] the app has since been released for LG, Samsung, and Sony smart TVs, as well as for Android TV.[3][4] On May 27, 2020, it became available on Apple TV.[5] As of September 2019, the app is available in 69 countries.[6] YouTube launched a web-based version of YouTube Kids on August 30, 2019.[7]
YouTube Kids has faced criticism from advocacy groups, particularly the Fairplay Organization, for concerns surrounding the app's use of commercial advertising, as well as algorithmic suggestions of videos that may be inappropriate for the app's target audience, as the app has been associated with a controversy surrounding disturbing or violent videos depicting characters from children's media franchises. Criticism over the videos led YouTube to announce that it would take more stringent actions to review and filter such videos when reported by the community, and prevent them from being accessible from within the YouTube Kids app.
- ^ "YouTube Kids". www.youtubekids.com. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
- ^ Alba, Davey (February 23, 2015). "Google Launches 'YouTube Kids,' a New Family-Friendly App". Wired. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
- ^ Perez, Sarah (April 25, 2017). "YouTube Kids comes to smart TVs". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
- ^ "Android TV app for YouTube Kids now available". Android Police. August 10, 2017. Retrieved April 27, 2018.
- ^ "YouTube Kids is now on Apple TV". Engadget. May 27, 2020.
- ^ "System requirements and app availability for YouTube Kids – Android – YouTube Kids Parental Guide". support.google.com. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
- ^ "YouTube Kids launches on the web". TechCrunch. August 30, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.