In a tough year for kids content producers, public broadcasters commissioned the most first-run children’s TV programming, according to Ampere Analysis. All told, BBC, France Télévisions and NPO were each responsible for greenlighting 21 kids shows in 2024, followed by CBC (12), RTE (11), RAI (10), and ABC Australia and TFO (nine each). 

On the commercial side of the media landscape, Canal+, Disney+, Disney Channel and SVT each commissioned eight shows, with Netflix and EBS at seven, and ZDF, PBS and VRT at six. It’s worth noting that streamers Disney+ and Netflix were the only non-pubcasters that even made the top-10 list this year. 

Globally, there were 336 first-run kids TV series orders this year, compared to 368 in 2023. And this continues a more prolonged downward trend—from 445 in 2021 and 430 in 2022—driven, in part, by streamers commissioning less and focusing more on acquisitions, says Guy Bisson, executive director and co-founder of Ampere Analysis. Another factor is the broader economic slump of linear broadcasters resulting from a significant drop in advertising revenue. And it’s important to note that it’s not just kids content that’s suffering; Bisson says the media industry as a whole is seeing similar declines across all programming genres. 

In terms of overall investment (commissions and acquisitions combined), buyers spent US$78.9 million on kids & family content this year, which is flat against 2023 (US$78.2 million), and down from more than US$81 million annually in 2022 and 2021. Ampere expects this figure to continue dropping until it hits US$67.7 million by 2029, and its projection for 2025 is US$74.6 million. “Not to say it won’t change, but nothing suggests [major growth] will come in the next five years,” says Bisson. 

Kids and family content spend from 2020 to 2029. Courtesy of Ampere.