According to media watchdog Ofcom, 50% of five- to seven-year-olds in the UK are streaming content online, and that’s up from 39% last year. Behind this number-one driver is social media (38%, up from 30%), and more kids are also gaming (41%, up from 34%) and making voice/video calls (65%, up from 59%).

The most popular apps with this age group are WhatsApp (37%, up from 29%), TikTok (30%, up from 25%), Instagram (22%, up from 14%) and Discord (4%, up from 2%). Just under a quarter of them own a smartphone (24%), and more than three-quarters use tablets (76%). 

Ofcom spotted a few trends in the kinds of content that kids watch online. They still want fast-paced, short-format videos—especially presented in split-screen mode so they can watch more than one at a time—and they are fast-forwarding through TikTok videos at double speed. In direct contrast, however, girls are more interested in relaxing sensory content, including slow-paced ASMR videos, to help them de-stress and fall asleep. 

A full 32% of eight- to 17-year-olds surveyed say they have seen something inappropriate online in the last 12 months, but only 20% reported it to their parents. With this discovery in mind, Ofcom plans to focus more effort on protecting kids, including enforcing new laws such as the Online Safety Act that was passed in October and requires tech companies to protect kids. The org is also preparing to launch consultations on its new Children’s Safety Code of Practice, which lays out steps for techcos to ensure kids don’t see harmful content. And it will prepare a proposal this year exploring how AI can be used to protect kids from inappropriate content. 

Photo courtesy of Emily Wade via Unsplash