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Spotify Kids: Special version of streaming service launched for children

Children will be encouraged to listen to singalongs and soundtracks

Andrew Griffin
Wednesday 30 October 2019 12:25 GMT
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A view from the crowd during Spotify's RapCaviar Live in Houston at Revention Music Center on December 14, 2017 in Houston, Texa
A view from the crowd during Spotify's RapCaviar Live in Houston at Revention Music Center on December 14, 2017 in Houston, Texa

Spotify has launched a special version of its service for children.

The Spotify Kids app gives children access to about 6,000 tracks, all of which the company says have been specifically chosen for children.

Younger kids will get access to a range of songs that include singalongs, lullabies and soundtracks such as those from Disney. Older children will get a curated selection of pop songs, all of which will have been chosen by Spotify staff to be "appropriate and relevant for older kids​".

In addition to keeping children limited to a selection of kid-friendly tracks, the app will allow parents to give children their own login, and therefore keep those songs from being added to the adults' listening history. The company said it was aware that kids have their own tastes that are often very different from parents, and the need for a separate app was shown in research.

The Spotify Kids app also brings a different design, which the company said had been focused on making navigation easy.

The editors deciding the content in the app have come from a variety of other kid-focused companies, Spotify said, such as Nickelodeon and Disney.

The app is currently only available in Ireland, but will be rolling out across the rest of the world. Users need the Spotify Premium Family account, which allows people to pay one subscription for everyone in the household, but the app will be free for those with that subscription.

Spotify said it had been launched in beta for now, as a trial, because it recognised the app is a "new space". It will also look to bring other kinds of audio content to the app as it develops, the company said, suggesting that podcasts and other shows could be added.

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