New children’s brands hope to challenge ‘Bluey’, ‘Peppa Pig’ and ‘CoCoMelon’

It’s been almost a decade since Joe Broome’s little-known Australian children’s series bluish The Asian Animation Summit took place in Brisbane, Australia, and Cecilia Pearson, CEO of BBC Children’s and Family Studios, remembers the moment fondly.

“We all came together around this,” says the executive, who was working in WarnerMedia’s children’s division at the time. “Right out of the gate there was an incredible emotional story, and at the same time you could see that bluish He spoke to both children and parents on their level.

The show follows Bluey, the lovable and indefatigable blue pup (also known as an Australian Cattle Dog), and her life with her father, mother and little sister Bingo. In each episode, Bluey uses her boundless energy to play elaborate games that unfold in ways that bring her family and neighbors together. when bluish First shown at the summit in 2016, buyers quickly saw the potential of the show to become a global children’s brand and were keen to get in on the action.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and the BBC were eventually involved in the commission bluish In 2017, a few years later, BBC Studios signed a landmark deal to license the show to Disney globally, retaining distribution and merchandising rights. The deal is seen as a stroke of commercial genius in the sector and was a key driver in helping BBC Studios achieve record revenues last year. Rumors persist that Disney will try to buy Megabucks at some point. It turns out that adorable puppies really do pay the price.

At present, bluish It is recognized as a strong brand for both children and adults and its status as the most broadcast show in the United States is regularly promoted.

While kids entertainment brands always have the potential to grow exponentially, offerings such as Bluey, Peppa Pig, Cocomelon And most recently, a feature film from Netflix demon hunters in kpop, It appears to have reached higher levels in the post-pandemic period. Netflix’s semi-annual “data dumps” are now embellished with children’s TV shows, promotional opportunities are greater than ever thanks to streaming, and platforms like YouTube can create global behemoths at a dizzying rate. But with children’s content budgets more challenged than ever, will the rising tide continue or will some content be left behind?

Emily Horgan, former Disney executive and current children’s media consultant, can’t discuss the genre without quickly pointing out the influence of streaming and YouTube.

“The Streaming Wars are now five years old and entering their infancy,” says Horgan. “Until now it’s been a matter of finding notable entertainment shows like House of cards or The MandalorianBut this extra focus wasn’t helpful for children’s content. These offers do not appear immediately –bluish “It’s been a long time in the making, so this is a big moment for kids’ brands.”

Horgan explains that as they now look to prioritize subscriber retention, streamers better understand that family viewing is crucial to keeping the lights on. These shows are often watched on repeat, so putting the most popular kids’ shows front and center on the streaming platform is crucial.

Modernize and reinvent

One of the key elements to success in this field, most executives say, is the ability to become part of a child’s daily routine.

“Little kids have it Peppa pig “She’s part of the family,” says Esraa Kafer, senior vice president of global brand strategy and management at brand owner Hasbro. “In their lives from mealtimes to playtime to bedtime.” This level of resonance and trust is something that takes a very long time to build.

Another key element, according to Hasbro, is reinvention when the time is right. The company recently embarked on what Kafer described as “the biggest thing we’ve done in storytelling in 20 years” by introducing Evie Pig, Peppa’s younger sister, to audiences. In a world full of bleak news headlines, Hasbro felt a cute cartoon little pig was just what the world needed.

Introducing Evie to the world was the result of 18 months of top-secret planning: the latest Pippa In addition, the gender was revealed, and he appeared on the cover of a UK magazine Grazia It was discussed on national breakfast television. Evie was also born in the Lindo Wing at St Mary’s Hospital – the same place where Kate Middleton gave birth to her babies – after which a town crier announced Evie’s arrival into the world.

According to Kafer, Evie’s content has so far generated more than 30 billion impressions across social media platforms, and there’s a lot more to come in 2026.

“I thought this would be news because these characters are famous, but the press reaction is something we never expected,” Kafer says. “This was a beautiful thing and also something we worked hard on.”

Horgan praises Hasbro for making a “fundamental change in the DNA of the brand, which I respect a lot because if you don’t do it right you’re going to screw it up.”

The story of Effy Pig’s birth showed just how much can be achieved when one does a little bit of reinvention in a brand’s recipe, and it’s perhaps no wonder Hasbro has stuck so closely to children’s brands like Peppa pig and My little ponywhen it sold the film and TV studio eOne to Lionsgate in 2023. The marketing potential can be amazing when you introduce a new character or change a brand.

Peppa pig It currently has deals with companies like Walmart and Toys “R” Us, with the latter now keeping a close eye on the content space. Four-time Emmy Award-winner and head of Toys “R” Us Studios, Kim Miller-Ulko, is set to deliver the opening keynote at this year’s MIP Junior, where she will discuss “brand and content strategy — from embracing AI, early testing on YouTube and TikTok, to initiatives exploring the intersection of mental health And play.”

Brands are also constantly seeking to attract fans to new territories. bluish It was recently dubbed into Zulu, Afrikaans, Swahili and Nigerian pidgin, marking what BBC Studios described as “an important step in making quality children’s programming reflective of African voices”.

However, no region is more important right now than Korea. Industry vet Norman Grossfeld is the creator of this icon Pokemon The slogan is “I gotta catch them all” and has helped sponsor some of the biggest brands of the past three decades. In an effort to capitalize on young people’s love for Korean content, Grossfeld joined forces with Seoul and Los Angeles-based studio Aanaxion to run its own Korean content label, Konfetti Studios. The company will start its menu with a menu that includes the preschool series Huggleboobs.

“I am optimistic about Konfetti’s chances precisely because of its success Bluey, cocomelon and “Peppa Pig.” He tells us after just a few weeks of work. “They were all started by independent labels and creators outside the studio system, which gives them that magical spark.”

Grossfeld’s timing couldn’t be better. At press time, Demon hunters in kpop It became Netflix’s most watched film of all time with over 236 million views – a record achievement. “Korean content is driven by a creative vision of what the target audience is,” Grossfeld says. “It wasn’t watered down by studio notes to try to make it ‘something for everyone’.”

Netflix launch decision Demon hunters in kpop Direct-to-streaming raised question marks about a potential missed opportunity in cinema, but Sony Pictures Animation was able to secure a brief theatrical run for its standalone version, which grossed an estimated $19.2 million opening weekend (although Netflix didn’t want to officially report the numbers). It marked Netflix’s first win at the box office, knocking out Zach Cregger Weapons From the box office.

bluish and Cocomelon Both are gearing up to release the films in 2027 and hope the theatrical release will add another layer of success. In the same year, Moonbug’s Cocomelon will join bluish on Disney+, moving from Netflix after the high-profile deal was announced earlier this year.

“The front page of the children’s Internet”

Horgan believes there is a less discussed element to the runaway success of Demon hunters in kpop The sharp rise in the number of people watching YouTube channels promoting Korean content has been Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation. In fact, anyone determined to make their kids’ brand a success knows they should take YouTube seriously thanks to the platform’s massive reach with younger audiences.

Nicholas Iglau, Moonbug’s President for EMEA and APAC, knows all too well the power of YouTube. CocomelonI avoided the traditional children’s brand path by starting life on the Google-owned platform and building from there, he says.

“The traditional model was big brands starting out as feature films and then moving to pay TV, free TV or streaming, but we’ve reversed that, starting with YouTube, then Netflix, then linear broadcasters,” says Iglau. “I still think so Cocomelon It revolutionized the industry. The future is these blockbuster brands.”

Hasbro’s Cafer says there is no “cannibalism.” Peppa pigIts Linear Audience Although YouTube is the cornerstone of its strategy, the social video platform has certainly made a splash in the traditional children’s entertainment sector. “Kids are in charge of their own schedule now, and we have the opportunity to program for them around the clock with no barrier to entry and no fees,” says YouTube’s Grossfeld.

At the recent Annecy International Animation Film Festival, producers lamented the difficulty they face in sponsoring shows in a traditional way thanks to children’s penchant for YouTube, as well as increasingly cash-strapped broadcasters. Monetizing content on YouTube is also difficult, made even more difficult by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 2020, which disabled ads tailored to children’s content and forced all creators to label their videos as “made for kids.” Horgan says the Made For Kids brand is seeing revenue earned from a piece of YouTube content drop by up to 70%.

“The irony is that the biggest brands of original IP coincide with a time when financing has never felt so challenging,” Horgan says. She adds that this represents a stark contrast to the “golden age of linear children’s television” about 15 years ago when shows like Paw patrol, Hey Dougie and PJ Masks It was a huge success, making it easier to get funding for children’s content.

“There’s also the problem that if you want to get big on YouTube, you have to be able to do global play, but when public broadcasters commission it, they want to secure the rights at a local level, and that makes it very difficult to build franchises. YouTube is now the front page of the children’s Internet, so that creates a problem.”

Patricia Hidalgo, director of BBC Children’s, said she was “appalled” by the dramatic decline in demand for animation over the past few years in the US. “We are a global industry, and if Disney, Amazon and Netflix withdraw, it will mean a huge decline.” [type of] “She’s a co-producer for all of us,” she says, as a UK parliamentary inquiry into the struggling children’s television sector takes place.

But looking to the future, Hidalgo strikes an optimistic note, and also points out how important these big brands are to the survival of traditional children’s TV commissioners like the BBC.

“They’re unicorns,” she says. “It comes every 10, 15, 20 years and explodes. It’s a blessing that we still have it. If we hadn’t, the industry would have diminished much faster.”