At the APOS media and entertainment conference held in Bali, Indonesia, Candle Media CEO Kevin Mayer spoke about the news that the widely-loved animated series Cocomelon is set to depart from Netflix and move to Disney+.
In May, it was reported by The Hollywood Reporter that Disney+ had secured Cocomelon after Netflix decided not to renew its contract. As of 2027, Disney+ will hold all seasons of the popular preschool show produced by Moonbug Entertainment’s Candle unit. According to sources from Netflix, they opted not to renew the license for Cocomelon due to a drop in viewership. The series has been on Netflix since 2020, and despite releasing four new seasons in 2024, its preschool audience decreased by almost 60% from the first half of 2023 to the second half of 2024, as indicated by Netflix’s reports.
On Wednesday, Mayer participated in a conversation at APOS alongside Vivek Couto, the executive director of Media Partners Asia. During this chat, he was specifically questioned about the potential move of ‘Cocomelon’ to Disney, a deal that, despite Netflix’s statements about decreasing viewership, is still considered quite significant for Mayer’s previous employer due to the powerful and widespread nature of the children’s brand.
Personally, I wouldn’t jump to conclusions that one move, such as Netflix losing a show to Disney+, points to a significant change in the overall ecosystem. The intellectual property from Moonbug, which is our focus here, primarily originates on YouTube, and I believe it represents a unique approach for media companies.
As a gamer, I’d say: “I’ve learned that YouTube is a goldmine for producing commercially successful intellectual properties (IP) like Cocomelon, for companies such as Moonbug. Five years ago, we grabbed hold of Cocomelon, created by a South Korean duo in south L.A., which was already quite popular with around 60 million subscribers and millions of views each month. Since then, we’ve expanded our fanbase to an astounding 200 million subscribers! To put it into perspective, in January of this year alone, Cocomelon and the rest of our Moonbug libraries racked up a whopping 10 billion views!
Originally, Cocomelon was solely a YouTube channel. However, Candle aimed to expand its reach beyond that, turning it into a multi-platform brand. As such, content from YouTube was moved to Netflix, where initial releases were essentially the same seasons previously uploaded to YouTube, but restructured into hour-long episodes. Since 2021, this reorganized content has been available on Netflix, and it has consistently ranked as the most popular show worldwide.
Mayer stated that Cocomelon enjoyed a successful stint on Netflix, but Moonbug Entertainment has explored various other opportunities to leverage the brand’s popularity. These endeavors encompass creating games, licensing agreements, and music production for streaming services such as Spotify. In fact, last year, Moonbug surpassed Taylor Swift in total music streams across all platforms.
For quite some time, Netflix had been a suitable platform for [Cocomelon] and offered various usage opportunities. Some parents prefer YouTube, while others find the more controlled atmosphere provided by Netflix more appealing. As for children’s and family content, Disney has always been a fitting home, Mayer stated. “Given my background at Disney, where I spent 25 years, it seems natural that this would move there. We aim to distribute our properties effectively across multiple streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon, and Disney+, as there are numerous options available. Each platform offers a unique ‘home’ for our content, and we strive to maximize the potential of each one.
Towards the closing of the fireside chat, Mayer recalled to share some exciting news – the beloved brand Cocomelon will team up with Sanrio’s worldwide pop culture sensation, Hello Kitty, in a collaboration. While he didn’t disclose any specifics or platforms for this partnership yet, Mayer did mention that it would debut in 2026 and promised it would be a “happily anticipated event for children and adolescents worldwide.
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2025-06-25 06:24