Kid ModeTM by Zoodles Reaches 1 Million Children and Becomes Fastest-Growing Service for Young Kids

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zoodles, the company that puts devices into Kid Mode™, today announced that more than 1 million children ages 8 and under use its Kid Mode apps across computers, tablets and smart phones. Four kids join Zoodles every minute – just for comparison, around 8 kids are born every minute in the United States. 500,000 children have joined Kid Mode in just the last 90 days and Kid Mode users have spent more than 3 million hours playing educational games that develop important math and reading skills.

“Tablets are dramatically changing the way kids play, but parents still want to know that their child is getting great content, and that the tablet is protected”

The company attributes this rapid growth to its hit family features like Video Mail and recordable Storybooks, and its mobile apps. Kid Mode for Android regularly ranks in the top 5 education apps for Android smart phone users. Kid Mode includes educational games and videos, plus features that help families stay connected through recordable Storybooks, Video Mail and an Art Studio.

“We are now the fastest-growing company in the under-8 market, and in just the last 90 days we have doubled the number of children using Kid Mode,” said Zoodles CEO and co-founder Mark Williamson. “Kid Mode gives parents a daily tool to keep their kids independently entertained and learning, with activities that have been hand-picked for their child’s age and skill level. We hope every family in the world gives our award-winning Kid Mode app a try… it will change the way your children play, learn and connect with family on any device!”

The company is also announcing that Kid Mode now supports all Android tablets, including a version optimized for the popular MOTOROLA XOOM™. MOTOROLA XOOM’s support for Adobe Flash enables children to play hundreds of popular Flash-built games directly in the app. Using MOTOROLA XOOM’s front facing camera, children can record video mail messages for family members right on the tablet, or watch a grandparent read them a classic bedtime story like Goldilocks and the Three Bears or Jack and The Beanstalk.

“Tablets are dramatically changing the way kids play, but parents still want to know that their child is getting great content, and that the tablet is protected,” Williamson said. “We only expect our growth rate to rise as families try Kid Mode on their Android tablets.”

Kid Mode™ for Android Tablets has 4 unique features that make it a must-have app for families:

1. Kids are Safely Contained in the App: With Kid Mode, parents can lock the Home button while kids play; this means kids can’t accidentally get out and delete emails, move calendar appointments, uninstall apps, or otherwise wreak havoc.

2. Parents Can Control the Content: A team of education experts selects all of the games and videos in Kid Mode. Parents can set additional controls that filter content for each child based on age, interests and educational topics they deem important, like math and reading.

3. Video Mail Connects Kids to Family Members: Kid Mode has the first ever video mail service designed for kids. Pre-approved adults can send video mail messages to children using their webcam, and children can respond using the front facing camera on the tablet.

4. Recordable Bedtime Stories: Traveling for work or living across the country no longer stops a loved one from reading a bedtime story to a child. Pre-approved adults can record themselves reading a dozen classic storybooks, which the child can then watch over and over on the tablet.

Sue Hillbeck, a military wife and mother of three, has made Zoodles Kid Mode a part of her family’s everyday routine. "My husband is in the military and we are currently based 200 miles away from family,” said Hillbeck. “We use Zoodles to send video messages and stories back and forth between the children and our family, and we also intend to use it when my husband deploys as a way of keeping in touch. They love Zoodles and ask to play the games every day."

Kid Mode is the only mobile service for young kids that customizes its content to each child. For example, if a child reads at a first grade level, Kid Mode will only present games and educational videos at that level. All the games in Zoodles have been played start-to-finish by a team of education experts and matched to national education standards. Within Kid Mode, parents can customize the subjects kids focus on, such as science or math, or block certain characters and set time limits using the Parent Dashboard at www.Zoodles.com. Kid Mode is free to download, and a Premium Membership, which includes all the parental control and monitoring features, costs $7.95 per month, $39.95 for six months or $59.95 for a year.

About Zoodles Kid Mode™

Silicon Valley-based Zoodles was founded in 2008 by entrepreneur and father of two Mark Williamson. Frustrated by his young daughter’s experience trying to use the computer, he quickly saw the need for a “Kid Mode” that would provide kids with the best content from around the Web in an interface that even the youngest kids could use independently. Zoodles Kid Mode is now available online for PC or Mac at www.zoodles.com, on mobile devices running on Android or iOS operating systems and as a Firefox and Google Chrome browser plug-in. For more information visit www.zoodles.com.

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