By Adam Woodgate

To mark Kidscreen‘s 30th anniversary, we’re pausing to look back—and to look ahead—at an industry shaped by constant change, creative risk and a stubborn belief that what we do matters deeply. Please join us as we celebrate three decades of proudly supporting that. And here’s to bravely embracing whatever comes next.

The children of 1996 watched scheduled television, rewound VHS tapes and phoned friends on landlines. Thirty years later, their own children navigate a landscape so transformed that it would be unrecognizable to their younger selves. Based on The Insights Family’s research, here are my picks for the 10 technological leaps forward that have most profoundly reshaped what it means to be a child.

1. The internet
Before the internet revolutionized nearly every aspect of modern life, accessing home entertainment meant a cable subscription, a trip to the video shop or waiting for a program to start. Today, kids and teens are averaging an hour and 41 minutes online each weekday—the top activity after sleep and school—and two hours and 15 minutes on weekends. By connecting creators and audiences directly, the internet has created a borderless universe of content.

2. MP3 players
Apple’s iPod arrived in 2001 with a simple promise: “1,000 songs in your pocket.” MP3 players transformed how young people engaged with music, letting them carry their entire musical world wherever they went. This portability made music a constant companion, and kids ages three to 18 currently listen to music and audio for 46 minutes per weekday.

3. Touchscreen devices
Neither the iPhone (2007) nor the iPad (2010) were designed for children, but kids quickly adopted tablets and gravitated towards smartphones as they got older. Entertainment became portable and let children curate their own media lives for the first time. Six- to 12-year-olds spend an average of nine hours a week on smartphones and nearly six hours on tablets.

4. Gaming consoles and handhelds
Gaming consoles have been in living rooms since the 1970s, but innovations since 1995 have significantly transformed the gaming experience. Online multiplayer platforms (Xbox Live, 2002) and the Nintendo Switch’s hybrid design in 2017 made it social. Modern gaming emphasizes creativity (one in eight kids ages six to 12 cite building as their top activity in video games) and connection (socializing ranked third, with around 10% of kids listing this as their number-one pursuit).

5. Minecraft, Roblox and Fortnite
Metaverse games deserve their own category. These worlds act as virtual playgrounds for building, creating and exploring—sparking imagination in ways that traditional entertainment can’t. Popularity scores among three to 18s put Roblox at 15%, Minecraft at 12% and Fortnite at 7% (excluding China, where only Minecraft is available).

6. YouTube
When the very first video (Me at the zoo) was uploaded to YouTube in 2005, few could have predicted its dominance in children’s entertainment. The platform launched formats that were unlikely on linear TV—and remain so—ranging from tutorials to influencer content. Music videos lead viewing (34%), followed by gaming (30%) and shorts (25%). Today, every kids brand needs a YouTube strategy.

7. Video streaming services
Netflix began streaming with just 1,000 titles in January 2007—letting families choose what they want to watch, when they want to watch it. Other SVOD services followed, turning video rental shops into relics within a decade. Across the countries surveyed, Netflix is typically the most used subscription video platform, dominating on-demand viewing among kids.

8. Social media platforms
Although social platforms like Instagram and TikTok are not aimed specifically at children, they’ve reshaped how they communicate. TikTok encourages quick, snackable vertical videos, letting kids avoid uninteresting content. Usage among six to 12s is substantial (Instagram 65%, TikTok 58%), and even higher for 13 to 18s, driving connections with peers, influencers and family.

9. Broadband and mobile connectivity
Without broadband and 4G/5G, most of the previously mentioned innovations would be frustrating if not impossible. Connectivity, speed, reliability and quality underpin streaming, gaming, apps and the entire digital transformation of childhood.

10. Generative AI
At the risk of sounding repetitive, AI was never designed for children—yet by Q1 2025, 27% of three- to 12-year-olds had used platforms like ChatGPT or Copilot, and another 30% planned to. Kids are creating, learning and coding, as AI disrupts content, creation, distribution and interaction simultaneously.

These 10 innovations share a common trajectory: Each has given children more control. From passive viewers to curators of personalized media, today’s kids exercise unprecedented agency over the entertainment they consume. The challenge for the next 30 years will be ensuring that technology empowers rather than exploits them.

Adam Woodgate is VP of research solutions for The Insights Family, the leader in marketing insights related to kids, parents and young adults in 22 countries. For more information, visit theinsightsfamily.com.

This story originally appeared in Kidscreen‘s Q1 2026 magazine issue.