So the other day I want to find a way to edu-tain my toddler while I ride my stationary bike. I decide to go online and look for Pocoyo videos. Pocoyo is an animated character that speaks Spanish. I’m doing my best to teach both of my daughters Spanish, but it’s tough when I’m the only one around them that speaks it. Perfect, right? I can get some exercise and my daughter can watch some ‘toons in Spanish and see that it’s not only a language her mother speaks.
Anyway, I go to Google and ask it to find me some Pocoyo videos for free, but I know nothing is truly free and I’m prepared to deal with some advertising. No biggie. I hit the jackpot at Dailymotion.com; they’ve got all kinds of Pocoyo videos. I put one on and sure enough we have to watch an ad first, for get this: Plan B birth control. I find this an odd choice for a kids video. Are they trying to get my kid to bug me incessantly until I buy Plan B birth control? It’s a little late for that option as far as I’m concerned and I’m hoping my daughter won’t have any need for it in the immediate future.
She watched a few Pocoyo videos that day and they were all advertising Plan B. Every time the ad would play my daughter said, “What happening, Mama?” I don’t really want to get into a conversation with an almost 3 year old about unplanned pregnancy and how sometimes your regular birth control might fail, so you might need a back up in the next 72 hours. So I just said, “Oh, it’s a commercial.”
Before writing this post, I went back to see if maybe the inappropriate advertising was just a one time deal. Nope. Today I got an ad for beer. I have no problem with birth control or beer or ads for either, but honestly shouldn’t you know your target audience? Choose appropriate advertisers. I really think the advertisers are wasting their money because there is no way that my daughter is going to be able to buy Budweiser at the corner store without a fake ID and even then I don’t think she can open the cooler by herself.
Maybe Pocoyo is actually owned by the tobacco companies? Are there hidden messages in it?
I wonder if after your workout you had a craving for a Bud Beer…if so then it worked! Makes sense to advertise candy, cereal and juice boxes!
OH my beer and birth control should be the last thing toddlers think about
This is funny. I hope they read your post! The advertisers themselves would probably be irritated to know that their advertising dollars are being wasted!
Right?
I was thinking of sending them a link.
you should
Holy Inappropriatness….lol 🙂
I totally LOVE pokoyo! However you spell his name. My kids will watch that show forever. It’s great. (Here he speaks English though. I think I’ve picked up that there are about 2 or 3 Spanish words though)
I really think the advertisers are wasting their money because there is
no way that my daughter is going to be able to buy Budweiser at the
corner store without a fake ID and even then I don’t think she can open
the cooler by herself.
You never know… these kids are smarter than you think they are… especially if you keep edu-taining them with smart Spanish-language cartoons…
You’re right, I really shouldn’t sell my daughter short.
Good for you for trying to teach your child Spanish!
Yeah, that just seems inefficient from a marketing standpoint if nothing else.
That’s kind of a trip. Maybe they just have those type of advertisers for the whole sight, regardless of content. Plan B would be an awkward commercial with ANYONE. Does it really need a commercial?
That’s really weird… and completely inappropriate!
Whoa! That advertising network is whacked! They need to get their act together.
Ugh.
And high five on the bike exercise!
xo jj
Wow. That is some poor target marketing. Maybe they assume that you’re sitting there enjoying some Pocoyo? That’s nutty.
Maybe the Plan B people were thinking the kids would prefer not to have siblings?
A beer ad for a kids’ show! Yikes.
beer and birth control is an interesting combo no matter what the age.
While I agree it is stupid and inappropriate, I hope this type of problem doesn’t bring the PC police into the picture. My small amount of experience with Dailymotion indicates to me that it is not really focused on little toddlers (maybe teen boys?). There are kid approved sites and I would expect they control the ads much better. I know that may not have been your point here, but that website is not kids’ cartoon hour. I agree it was a waste of ad dollars and strange enough to point out.
Just a bad pairing. Sort of like beer and birth control.
I’m glad you found the videos but that makes me sad about those ads. I have been a fan of All My Children for as long as I can remember. I know I watched it each day when my little ones were around, before the VCR thing. They would always have commercials for feminine products and it would always bother me. I didn’t need to tell my 4 yr. old what a tampon was!
It does seem inappropriate advertising for it’s audience!
The other day on Pocoyo “Pussy pussy pussy pussy……”
They said it about 20 times quickly in a row.
Why??