The streaming service has launched a separate app for children able to filter out inappropriate content, hide comments and prevent them from registering and logging in to YouTube service. The app was launched in the United States only, for Android and for iOS devices. Google, the YouTube parent company, promised to roll it out elsewhere in the future. YouTube Kids App will be free and funded by advertising, with the company promising to carefully screen the adverts to make sure they are appropriate for the young viewers.

New YouTube Kids service groups videos into 4 categories: Music (videos from nursery-rhyme channels such as Mother Goose Club), Shows (videos from well-known kids TV brands such as Sesame Street or Thomas and Friends), Learning (educational videos) and Explore (videos from other kids channels, including Minecraft gamers like Stampy and cooking tutorials).

The categories are presented in the form of scrolling carousels of new videos. YouTube Kids app also offers a search function supporting text or voice entry for younger users. Their parents will be able to disable the search function and set limits on the amount of time the app can be used by the kids.

Since YouTube is owned by Google, it will inevitably face scrutiny over the plans to monetize the YouTube Kids App and data collection issue. YouTube confirmed that the service will be ad-supported – this will allow to make it free and available to everyone. The adverts will be narrowed to family-friendly only. Since the app is of “logged-out” nature, the selection of videos won’t be customized according to viewers’ habits.

In the United States, the application is already operating under the strict Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act regarding the data that can be collected by online services on children aged under 13. The audience of the new app is expected to be quite wide: for example, in the United Kingdom, over 50% of 8-11 year-olds and 75% of 12-15 year-olds watch YouTube, and many of them prefer YouTube to traditional TV.

Industry experts point out that the launch of YouTube Kids may spark more new children channels. They might be right, as one of the games networks, Rooster Teeth, has already launched a Game Kids spin-off. Another example is Stampy, which is going to launch a second channel focused on education.