There are few boons to the modern parent more useful than the online streaming service. Gone are the days of quieting feral baby monsters with a battered VHS of All Dogs Go To Heaven 2 on endless repeat; now, with Netflix and Hulu as their babysitters, a generation of grateful parents can wrest a few moments of respite from the claws of their ravening spawn. Still, even Netflix’s library is finite, and eventually even the most saintly parent will reach the point where one more trip through Pac-Man And The Ghostly Adventures will send them screaming into the night. Sure, streaming Game Of Thrones on HBO Go can buy some time and teach the kids valuable conflict resolution skills, but it’s going to raise red flags with teachers and Social Services when little Jayden mounts his enemies’ severed heads on the playground’s blood-spattered walls.
Luckily, now Nickelodeon is getting into the streaming game, offering parents another option to keep their candy-coated charges docile and distracted. Executives for the Viacom-owned kids’ network announced plans for a new direct-to-consumer subscription service this week, with more details to be made available during upfront meetings next month. Presumably, the new service will be similar to CBS’s All Access or the planned standalone HBO Go, allowing users to access the network’s library of shows for a flat monthly fee. Executives also said the service will focus on mobile users, which is sure to warm the hearts of parents happy to see their kids’ hands clutching phones or tablets instead of smashing valuable antiques or bringing big globs of poison to their wide, welcoming mouths.