Meerkat, the live streaming sensation that blasted to popularity during SXSW, now shows signs of major continued momentum. The app recently raised $14 million in a funding round led by Greylock that includes some serious Hollywood backing (full list via @Forbes here).

Early adopters have included not just average everyday tech enthusiasts but celebrities such as Jimmy Fallon. There seem to be a lot of ways to use Meerkat within entertainment and technology, but where else might Meerkat find a place in people’s lives?

Last week, a friend sent this tweet from @Sprout, the Comcast owned network for kids:

Clever, and not surprising coming from the network that has been leaning into digital and mobile, having launched a companion app for their linear series “Ruff Ruff, Tweet and Dave” just last month.

This naturally got us thinking about Meerkat’s, and Periscope’s, potential use case for families and children. An optimal end goal would be that we’re all using the platform to “Meerkat Our Lives.”

Here are three initial thoughts on what this could mean:

Entertainment properties can surprise and delight kids LIVE.

Kids yearn to be connected to their favorite characters and already have a kung-fu grip on their parents’ mobile devices. Imagine a practical and magical scenario where kids now actually look forward to bedtime because their beloved character is going to read their bedtime story to them LIVE every night. Surely a great tool for parents wrestling with procrastinating toddlers.

Family centered media can add a new dimension.

Whether it’s major media with a family/parenting vertical or dedicated blogs, Meerkat offers the opportunity to connect like never before. From live Q&As with experts or sessions designed to connect parents who wish to share and swap stories, no one has to rely on a semi-sophisticated production setup any longer. All you need is an iPhone to fire it up and let the sharing begin.

Never Miss A Personal Milestone

There’s no question that videos of recitals, kindergarten graduations and birthday celebrations are shared widely on social media, but now multiple family members and friends can actually be “in the moment,” never having to miss another milestone again.

None of the above can be realized without mandatory considerations to keep things safe and secure. The most personal examples are likely not to be widely adopted until some new features are in place. For instance, the ability to create custom and private groups with exclusive access to the stream (e.g. “Grandma & Grandpa”). While COPPA may not apply here, there’s no doubt that media companies will want to ensure that any public stream that includes children has the proper controls in place, including the ability to potentially ban viewers posing inappropriate questions as an example.

On balance, Meerkat (or Meerkitten in this case), seems to present more upside than downside. For families, the app offers richer, deeper ways to stay connected around real time events. For entertainment, it offers fun ways for talent to connect kids and parents who are already heavy mobile device users. For family-centric media, it’s perhaps a more pervasive way to reach and connect with audiences, strengthening brand relationships.

It’s clear that the future of entertainment and television will be #CreatedWith children in mind and possibly at the helm. Meerkat and Periscope are providing some early indications that the future of communication will be led by content coming at you live.

New York City-based BRaVe Ventures —founded by David Beck, Jesse Redniss and Gary Vaynerchuck—works across the entertainment and technology ecosystems to advise, accelerate, invest and incubate business opportunities. Redniss is a member of the PromaxBDA Board of Directors. Follow BRaVe on Twitter @WeAreBRaVe.

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