Amazon Eyes the Kids' Tablet Market

It wasn’t so long ago that the notion of kids having their own tablet computers seemed excessive. But as tablets flood the market in record numbers—more than 27 million were purchased in the third quarter alone, according to market researcher IDC—it’s become clear that the entertainment-laden devices are tailor-made for smaller hands. “With the original Kindle Fire, we were really surprised with the feedback we got from parents regarding the fact that they liked to hand it over to their kids, and the kids were using it,” says Peter Larsen, vice president of Amazon.com’s Kindle unit.

That’s why in December the online retailer also started positioning its hot-selling tablet as a makeshift toy. Amazon introduced FreeTime Unlimited, a subscription multimedia service for the Kindle Fire and the Kindle Fire HD aimed exclusively at children between the ages of 3 and 8. Part streaming media generator, part content-vetting baby sitter, FreeTime costs $4.99 a month for a single child subscription and $9.99 a month for a family membership. (The price drops to $2.99 and $6.99, respectively, for Amazon Prime members.) Its young users have unlimited access to a vast trove of G-rated books, games, and films, featuring big names like Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer, as well as content provided by Walt Disney, Sesame Street, and DC Comics.