European pay TV leader Sky has announced it plans to expand its library of on-demand kids’ content from 700 titles to 4,000. The move is part of the broadcaster’s multi-million-dollar endeavor to become a major force in children’s VOD entertainment distribution.
Through agreements with major global rights holders, Sky is picking up hit animated shows including Adventure Time from Turner, SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer from Viacom, Silvergate Media’s The Octonauts and preschool hit Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom from eOne Family, as well as live-action and hybrid content like BBC Worldwide’s Horrible Histories.
To support the expanded offerings, Sky has launched a dedicated channel tile on its homepage, making the kids’ VOD package available to current Variety and Family subscribers. In addition to listing the available on-demand titles, the new channel will also provide a guide to what is currently airing on linear channels like CBeebies and Nick Jr.
The broadcaster has about 21 million customers across the U.K., Ireland, Italy, Germany and Austria. Sky is U.K. and Ireland’s biggest connected-TV platform today, recently marking nearly 7 million on-demand users in the regions.
