Netflix fine tunes kid profiles
Timed nicely with the COVID-19 related school closures, Netflix just released a number of new parental controls. These options provide more customization and the critical ability to lock down adult profiles with a pin. In short, you can set-up children’s profiles by content rating and block specific movies or TV shows that you simply don’t think they should be watching.
The NPD Take:
- Netflix continues their leading position when it comes to a best-in-class streaming offering and these enhancements underscore that. This will likely open up more content for children whose parents previously had them on the standard, fairly restrictive kids profiles. The net result is likely to be increased viewer engagement.
- We’re seeing sharp increases in day time viewership of children’s programming though Netflix kids profiles since the stay-at-home orders. In particular, over a 20 percent spike between 9:00AM and 2:59PM -- school hours. While this behavior will subside when kids can socialize again, they are establishing a brand affinity for Netflix that will last long afterwards.
Smack down, Raw & WrestleMania
“It is our commitment to you to somehow, someway provide you with a diversion during these hard times, deliver a sense of hope, determination and perseverance and, most of all, to entertain you and your family" said WWE chief brand officer Stephanie McMahon. Agree or not that the show must go on, it did. Pre-taped, no fans and streamed over two, not one night, WrestleMania 36 happened. As during the leading weeks where Smack Down and WWE Raw aired with an empty arena, so did the big event. WrestleMania 36 overall drew mixed reviews from fans and commentators.
The NPD Take:
- Losing the roar of the fans is detrimental. As with all live performances, the energy of the crowd is critical. This is a stop gap.
- WrestleMania is the single largest draw for the company. While many tuned in, this is likely to impact WWE Network subscribe retention.
Streaming media player sales skyrocket
During the week ending March 28th there was a 46 percent increase in streaming media player unit sales as compared to last year. We hear a lot about essentials, and work from home hardware being successful categories during the pandemic, but entertainment is also seeing a surge as consumers stuck at home value that leisure time.
The NPD Take:
- It’s not only value priced streaming media players that have seen success. Comcast reported a 50 percent increase in voice searches for free movies, catalog DVD sales were up and while small, there was even an increase in DVD player sales.
- Value priced entertainment is surfacing as a potential by product of COVID-19. Consumers are increasingly looking for entertainment but we’ve seen a focus on value. This is a trend that we will be watching closely as we move into the recovery phase of the crisis.