Children are ‘gold mine’ for YouTube channels in Vietnam

Along with gaming, providing content to children is one of the two trends that most attract YouTube content creators.

Of 50 YouTube channels with the highest numbers of subscribers in Vietnam, according to Socialblade, at least 10 channels target children. These include Tho Nguyen with 1.4 million followers, ranked 8th, and POPs Kids with 1.3 million followers, ranked 11th.

Tho Nguyen was launched in June 2016, but had video viewers of 650 million by May 26.

According to Nguyen Lac Huy from Schannel, a large YouTube channel in Vietnam, ranked 34th in number of subscribers. Tho Nguyen’s team can get VND200-300 million a month from YouTube. He said the revenue is not high compared with the number of viewers, because the channels for children do not have ad-friendly content. As for channels with content more friendly to ads, the income may be 3-4 times higher. However, the money from YouTube is just a part of the total income of YouTube channels. Two thirds of the total income comes from other sources, including pay for ads by businesses and brands.

With YouTube channels for children, it is easier to sell children’s products such as toys and sweets. Many parents complained that their children insist on the candies they have seen in videos despite the exorbitant prices. Tran Xuan Vinh, the manager of Vinh Vat Vo, a technology channel, ranked 48th in Vietnam in number of subscribers, said that developing videos on YouTube for children is now a growing tendency. “Children are considered loyal viewers, who watch the same content many times,” he explained. “Parents nowadays usually let children watch videos when feeding them, or use videos as ‘babysitters’ when they are away.” “In other words, developing channels for children is lucrative for YouTubers,” he said.

However, parents and education experts have recently expressed their concern about the uncontrolled content provided by the channels, saying that YouTubers are just trying to make money, and don’t aim to educate or help develop children’s personality. Spiderman Frozen Marvel Superhero Real Life, a YouTube channel with high number of subscribers, was fined VND30 million in January because it provided ‘unreasonable content’.

 Many Vietnamese make video clips to post on YouTube as they believe it allows them to make money quickly and easy.

Source: vir.com.vn