While time spent on phones, tablets, computers, and in front of the TV has increased significantly, there’s one difference between kids today and kids from two decades ago – the commercials they see (or don’t see.)
Today, many homes are “Netflix-only” homes. For these families, commercials aren’t a part of the viewing experience. For others, using kid friendly services and profiles can also eliminate the ads between content.
An article from Local Babysitter, using average screen time data from a University of Michigan study, shows that eliminating those ads saves kids ages 2-5 years old from 400 hours of commercials each year. For kids ages 6-11, it’s about 360 hours of commercials being avoided.
With any amount of screen time, it’s unlikely that kids will avoid advertisements completely. YouTube videos in particular are a constant source of advertisements, both through ads between videos and in the videos themselves.
As the article points out, this could have a number of effects on the way this generation reacts to marketing as kids from Netflix-only homes grow up, see more ads, and make spending decisions.
Do you think growing up in a commercial free home will have an effect on spending habits later in life? We’d love to hear from you. Share your thoughts in the comments!