This New Streaming Service Is Netflix, But Just for Kids

The streaming space is growing ever more-crowded as a new competitor is throwing its hat in the ring Thursday.

Fuhu, which makes the very successful nabi children’s tablets, is launching a monthly subscription service that will let kids binge on children’s movies, shows, music, e-books and interactive games for $4.99 per month. The service, called nabi Pass, is exclusive to Fuhu’s tablet line, which includes the nabi 2 and the new jumbo-sized Big Tab.

Fuhu’s up against plenty of competition, as there are already many streaming subscription services aimed squarely at kids. Netflix added a “For Kids” section back in 2011, and Amazon has a robust multimedia service called FreeTime Unlimited that’s pretty similar to what Fuhu is rolling out.

Fuhu founder Robb Fujioka, however, says nabi Pass’s educational offerings and its focus on curating quality content will help it stand out. Subscribers will get access to the Wings learning system, which offers kids lessons in math, reading and writing, as well as edutainment videos from the likes of National Geographic Kids. Fujioka says the focus on education helps Fuhu differentiate its service and keep costs down, since they’re not competing with the likes of Amazon to bid for expensive Nickelodeon content.

“My hunch is that people will buy it for the education and everything else on the video side is a plus,” Fujioka says.

In addition to National Geographic, nabi Pass will offer videos from DreamWorks Animation, games from app developer Cupcake Digital and music streaming from Walt Disney Records. Fuhu will have a sizable audience to whom it can pitch the service — The nabi tablet sold 1.5 million units in 2013 and is currently leading the children’s tablet market, according to research firm NPD.