The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
Alexa, read me a story: Audio content for kids on the rise
NEW YORK >> Melanie Musson in Belgrade, Montana, does a lot of driving with her four girls. Juggling a broad age range, 1 to 9, she’s forever searching for ways to keep them all entertained without relying entirely on video.
While she still adores paper and tablet books for her kids, Musson said: “I think when they hear without seeing, they have to make up visuals in their heads. That’s so good. They have to be engaged and get more out of it.”
There are plenty of quality audiobooks, podcasts and music for the young, she noted, but weeding through thousands of selections and jumping from platform to platform is a challenge since audio content has exploded over the last few years.
Dad blogger Balint Horvath in Zurich agreed after trying to make sense of kid options for his 14-monthold daughter.
“I couldn’t find any resource that would organize podcasts according to different criteria. Information without proper searchability is like looking for a needle in a haystack,” said Horvath, who works as a productivity coach for research and development teams.
Audiobooks and music for kids have been around awhile, but podcasts made for the 3-to-12 set are relatively new, driving more parents to choose one-stop platforms that include all formats.
Demand is ‘’primarily driven by parents who are podcast listeners or audiobook fans,’” said Frannie Ucciferri, associate managing editor for the nonprofit Common Sense Media.
With a huge bump in podcasts overall, the value of audio content for kids hasn’t been lost on companies large and small.
Spotify recently launched a new ad-free app, Spotify Kids, as a free extension for premium family subscribers. Not yet available in the U.S., it’s packed with singalongs, soundtracks and stories for children as young as 3. A platform called Pinna is among the latest to launch ad-free with a variety of content and ages in mind, at $7.99 a month or $79.99 a year. Others stick to podcasts alone, while Amazon’s FreeTime Unlimited allows par
“Ideally the average person wouldn’t be right up against the line,” he said.
The lower prices make late-model used vehicles more attractive. Last year, Edmunds estimated the average used vehicle cost $20,533. A 3-year-old one cost an average of $22,571. Borrowing $20,000 for six years would cost an average buyer about a $340 monthly payment.
Price isn’t the only reason buying used is becoming more attractive. Automakers, dealers and sites like Carvana offer used vehicles with warranties and maintenance records,
sometimes calling them “certified pre-owned.”
“I think we’re making it not as scary to buy a used car,” Dundas said. “It’s in great shape, it’s clean and I’m dealing with a legitimate company,” he said.
A record 2.8 million certified pre-owned vehicles were sold last year, according to Cox.
Aundrya Richardson, an emergency dispatcher in the Atlanta area, could have afforded a new car but knew she shouldn’t spend more than $30,000 while trying to recover from financial problems. She decided in early January to buy a silver 2016 Toyota Corolla with 25,000 miles on it from Carvana for about $15,000.
“I’m going to look for
something that’s lower but still a reliable vehicle,” she said. “I wasn’t really in a position to be super-picky. Maybe I’ll get what I want next time.”
As demand falls, the industry could be forced to increase incentives such as cash rebates and low-interest financing, and ultimately that could bring new vehicle prices down.
The average new vehicle sales price, including taxes, fees and automaker incentives, hit a record of $39,028 last November, according to Cox. But as demand from individual buyers ebbed in December, dealer discounts grew to 7% of the sticker price, the highest level since the financial crisis in July of 2009. That drove the average price down slightly to
In this 2018 file photo, a used 2017 Chevrolet Cruze sits in a row of other used, late-model sedans at a dealership in Centennial, Colo. More consumers are buying used automobiles as the price of new cars increases.
$38,948, according to Cox.
Richard Bazzy, owner of three Pittsburgh-area Ford dealerships, said automakers like Ford are going to
have to keep up low interest loans and cash offers to keep new vehicle sales strong.
Still, there are forces
working against lower new-vehicle prices. People are still buying SUVs and trucks, which accounted for 69% of U.S. sales last year. Trucks and SUVs generally are more expensive than cars, so that drives up the average sale price.
Also, people still want the latest safety and infotainment technology, says Chesbrough, and they are willing to spend to get it. Automakers are differentiating their new vehicles from even 2-year-old ones by adding more driver assist and safety features as well as bigger navigation screens and other technology, he said.
“All of that is going to force these vehicle prices to continue to creep up,” Chesbrough said.