MUMBAI: Summer holidays have come to an end and kids with their bags and water bottles have stomped back to school. While kids may be grumpy to wake up early and get back to the rigmarole of studies, another party that needs to wake up and take notice is the kids channels.

With schools reopening, consumption of kid’s content on Indian television has seen a substantial dip according to an analysis by Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India.

The decline is very much evident across all age groups. While the 4-8 years category registered ratings of 142043 in week 21, it saw an ascend in week 22 where it garnered viewership of 144519. However, in the current week (week 23) after the re-opening of schools, it went down to 126079.

On the other hand, the 9-14 years category also witnessed similar statistics where it fetched viewership of 114754 in week 21 and witnessed a substantial growth with 118091 in week 22. However, not surprisingly, in week 23 it dropped to 106168.

As per the analysis, the Southern and Western part of the country, where most schools have restarted, has witnessed a major decline in viewership. On the other hand, in North India where schools are yet to open, retains similar viewership. This goes to prove that the reopening of schools is the critical reason behind the decline in viewership.

Another key depiction that emerges from BARC India’s analysis is that even though Northern India contributes more in kids viewership, at a macro level Sothern India is the biggest market for kids in India.

With kids going back to school, looks like kids channels' executives will also need to take home some learnings. It now remains to be seen the bunnies that the likes of Cartoon Network, Pogo, Nickelodeon et al pull out of their hats in the light of BARC India's latest analysis. One thing is for sure, kids content producers will have to do what it takes to stop viewership from declining any further.