IDC: Entrepreneurs rush to grab China's children's Internet market

With the advent of the fourth birth peak, the growth potential of children-related consumer markets, such as clothing, food, education, training and entertainment, is not to be underestimated, according to a new study published by IDC. Based on the PC-side children's games, video, animation, education and other applications, based on mobile internet children's entertainment and education apps, has become a large number of Internet bosses and start-ups focus on the market. IDC predicts that 2013, children's games, children's online education-related Internet application market will become one of the vertical market competition, will also cause the continued attention of the capital market.

What is the market now?

The user base is huge. Currently, according to the average birth rate, China has about 20 million newborns a year, more than 100 million children aged 0-6, and more than 40 million urban children. By the end of 2012, the internet penetration rate of urban households was close to 60%. According to IDC data, as of the third quarter of 2012, China's smartphone penetration rate was close to 24%, which opened the door for children to reach the broad Internet application.

Children's internet needs are "ubiquitous". According to IDC research data in 2012, 00 of children's demand for Internet applications more diversified, games, video, anime, music, social, online learning are the main concerns of Internet applications. To some extent, children and youth groups have no special stickiness to Internet application, which belong to the "ubiquitous" trial stage.

The market is at an exploratory stage. Children are a special user group, from the Chinese market, the use of children's Internet market is mainly game-type applications, the basic formation of rice, hundred fields, Tencent and other brand competition pattern. But many children's Internet applications are still in the exploratory stage, such as children's online education market. Compared with recreational applications, children's education applications pay more attention to quality and content accuracy, and parents pay more wishes. However, online education is a kind of trans-domain market which integrates education and Internet, although different competitors try "entertainment + education" dual-element children's online education application or platform model, but still in the early stage of market exploration, and to form a brand advantage.

But the dilemma in this market is:

Special group market Operation Dimension and development. Children as a special group, despite the wide range of needs, but generally do not have the ability to actively decision-making, especially the purchase decision. Therefore, the need for industry enterprises from the user and user parents two groups of moderate guidance, "interaction, parent-child" concept for product design is more important.

Children and young people of different age groups for online entertainment and education products demand for a phased feature, products such as the inability to meet the growing needs of users, users will inevitably be lost, and constantly attract new users will greatly push the operating costs.

From the long-term development of enterprises, children's Internet applications are not limited to online, "Online + offline" Two-way layout will become a trend. This is the use of Internet enterprises to put forward higher requirements. Second, branding. For children's Internet market, brand influence is the key factor to attract users. And in the face of the huge children's Internet market, in addition to Tencent, 360, Baidu, Sohu and other Internet enterprises or through their own development, joint operations or mergers and acquisitions and other means to enter the market.

In addition, the early entry into the market of innovative companies, such as Tin Man, green box, engineer Dad and other brands have also been formed, compared to the vast number of innovative children's Internet/mobile internet companies will face the challenge of brand confidence.

IDC's proposal says that in the Chinese children's internet industry, to take this three steps: first, through a wide range of user research, to achieve bottom-up product design, and secondly, innovative business models, especially the diversification of the profit model; again, through the cooperation of industrial chain resources and cross-domain union, promote the "Online + offline" Common development.