Abstract
Based on the results of the Ratings Survey on Infants’ and Young Children's Media Viewing conducted in June 2025, this paper reports on their TV viewing and use of recorded programs, DVDs, and online videos.
The survey was conducted as a web panel survey targeting parents of pre-school children living in Tokyo and six other prefectures in the Kanto region. Its purpose was to understand what kinds of TV programs and media content they let their children watch as well as the children’s media usage and the parents’ attitudes toward it.
The weekly reach rates are 76% for overall television (real-time viewing, including NHK and commercial broadcasters), 44% for recorded programs/DVDs, and 66% for online videos. By age group, even among infants aged zero, 70% are exposed to television, and about half are exposed to online videos.
The average daily viewing time per week is 55 minutes for overall television, 13 minutes for recorded programs/DVDs, and 36 minutes for online videos. Viewing time for online videos increases with age. Regarding TV viewing, programs broadcast on NHK ETV are most commonly watched across all age groups. As for online video, intellectual training content predominates among younger children. However, with age, children increasingly watch gameplay videos and content shared by YouTubers.
Parents expressed concerns about the negative effects of both television and online video viewing, such as eyesight deterioration and media addiction. In particular, many parents voiced concerns about online videos, especially regarding their addictive nature and the risk of exposure to inappropriate content.
