MIPJUNIOR 2026 officially kicked off yesterday, October 10, bringing international buyers, producers, and broadcasters to the Palais des Festivals. The market's opening day offered a stark, analytical look at the rapid evolution of youth viewership, balancing the creative ambitions of new IP premieres with sobering data on financing, streaming cutbacks, and the dominance of video games among Generation Alpha.

Setting the analytical tone for the day, Glance presented its keynote, “Next-Gen Viewing: Trends Shaping Children’s ContenT”. International Research Manager Romy Nicolas unpacked audience measurement data to reveal how children's viewing habits are fundamentally shifting toward mobile platforms, even as their core interests remain unchanged. She categorized the trends into three key themes: Build for Scrollers, Beyond the Game, and Enduring Appeal. ‘Children’s screen time is relatively stable as they grow up, but where that time goes changes dramatically. Smartphones, YouTube, and TikTok take a growing share as they get older, and the most successful producers are those borrowing the codes of social media while staying true to the fundamentals children have always loved: music, sport, friendship, and animals’, explained. ‘Our data shows that the hits of tomorrow sit right at that crossroads’.

The market realities facing those ‘hits of tomorrow’ were starkly laid out by Ampere Analysis during a bracing overview of the kids' content sector. Senior Research Manager Cyrine Amor detailed the profound financing hurdles producers face, driven by a dramatic plunge in streamer commissions. While the 12 months leading up to the first half of 2026 saw 88 SVOD kids' TV orders --a slight 22% uptick from 2025-- it remains a massive drop from the 196 orders seen in 2022. Executive highlighted that streaming services are increasingly relying on long-tail catalog viewing rather than original commissions, while facing massive competition from AVOD platforms and YouTube.

Despite the challenging market dynamics, the creative spirit of MIPJUNIOR remained vibrant, highlighted by the world premiere screening of the new 2D animated comedy series “Migali”. Distributed by Moon-Keys International Content and produced by Easy Peasy Entertainment and Bardaf! Productions, the 52x11-minute series centers on a six-year-old spider princess navigating life at the Royal Academy. Ahead of the premiere at the Debussy Theatre, Director Cédric Frémeaux reflected on the journey of adapting the best-selling comic book into an animated series. He emphasized that Migali’s boundless energy and web-weaving chaos bring a fresh twist to the princess narrative, offering a mischievous, web-slinging heroine at the center of a world where royal expectations meet the everyday chaos of childhood.

The day concluded with a networking cocktail hosted by YouTube Kids, emphasizing the platform's role in the global kids' ecosystem. Amy Singer, Senior Director of Responsibility at YouTube, addressed the crowd, underscoring the vital relationship between technology platforms and creative storytellers. ‘Kids really want to feel seen when watching content. They want to laugh and be inspired, and we can make them feel good about who they are and who they can be... At YouTube, we know that scale without substance doesn't work for kids. Technology alone does not create the stories, the heart, the characters, these emotional worlds. That is all coming from you’, the executive told the attendees, raising a glass to the creators who build the emotional worlds children rely on.

Looking ahead to today, October 11, the market anticipates further strategic insights with a highly anticipated closing keynote from media cartographer Evan Shapiro, alongside continued screenings and robust networking as the industry prepares to transition into the broader MIPCOM market starting Monday. Capturing the overarching spirit of the event, Lucy Smith, Director of MIPCOM Cannes and MIPJUNIOR, noted the industry's resilient mindset: ‘If there are two words that are resonating the most this year, they are adaptability and cooperation. These have emerged as the absolute key elements among executives navigating the current landscape at this 2026 edition of MIPJUNIOR’.

Alberto Buitron, from Cannes

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