YouTube is launching a new app (initially on Android phones and tablets) that will run only kid-friendly content. YouTube for Kids -- home run right there -- will field age-appropriate videos of cats, Minecraft, Thomas the Tank Engine and other things wholesome / hilarious. The app launches on February 23, but USA Today has already snuck a look at it. The viewer opens up into eight large tiles, each focusing on popular kid-friendly video series, as seen above. There's then five symbols at the top of the app that will take kids to TV shows, music content, educational programming and a binocular icon for discovering top-ranking video.
Notably, the new app strips out a lot of the complications of classic YouTube: comments are gone and the interface is tiny finger friendly. "The images are big as are the tap targets for small fingers, and since most younger children can't type, they can search with voice," says Shimrit Ben-Yair, the project's group product manager. Parents can also set a viewing timer: once that runs out the password needs to be reentered before more video can be watched. Or the kid will probably just open the standard YouTube app -- they're tricky like that.
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