Parents who try to control what their young children watch often meet frustration when their efforts are thwarted by tech-savvy kids who find a workaround. If only there were a technology expert with children who liked cartoons who could prevent this from happening!
Meet Dave Harvilicz, co-founder of the new family-friendly streaming service Hopscotch TV. He was just appointed as assistant secretary for cyber, infrastructure, risk, and resilience at the Department of Homeland Security. Kids—good luck pulling an end-around on this guy.
It would seem that someone hired to protect this country from cyberattacks would have no problem making sure children watch only wholesome content. Since he’s also a parent of two young children, this is important to him. So he and his business partner Ross Greenberg, whom he met at their kids’ school bus stop, acquired the rights to classic cartoons.
That includes “Inspector Gadget,” “Paddington Bear,” “Strawberry Shortcake,” “Sonic the Hedgehog,” and “Super Mario World.” They have launched both a website (HopscotchTV.com) and an app (available on both the iOS App Store and the Google Play Store). The site offers content to entertain children while instilling positive values.
His own children, aged 7 and 9, were the perfect focus group.
“I bought DVDs from old stuff, like ‘Inspector Gadget,’ ‘Super Friends,’ ‘GI Joe,’ and that’s what I would show my kids if we had a long car trip. I wouldn’t show them the new stuff. I would show them all this old stuff, and they loved it,” he said.
As he was driving, he listened in. Most of the stories were character-driven, with positive, uplifting messages for children, such as “being good friends with each other, trying to do good.” The content was also pro-America—envisioning “America as a place where you try to do good things,” according to Harvilicz.
“And so we thought, why don’t we go see if we can license some of this old content?” he said.
It turned out that a lot of the good stuff was available.
Greenberg, who has two daughters, was on the same page.
Harvilicz said: “As parents, we wanted a platform we could trust—one that brings back the timeless shows we loved as kids while offering new stories that spark imagination and learning. HopscotchTV is our answer: a place where families can share in the joy of classic cartoons and look forward to fresh, meaningful content.”
With his new venture, Harvilicz has used his technology experience to solve one major problem. For instance, although children may watch a YouTube video that seems appropriate, parents have no control over the next video that pops up; children could end up watching something not suitable. That can’t happen on Hopscotch TV. When one cartoon ends, the only other available options are other wholesome cartoons.
“Hopscotch is a closed universe,” he said. “Your kids can watch everything on there, whether it’s on purpose or by accident, and they’re going to see wholesome quality that you wouldn’t be upset if they watched it.”
He’s also acquired the rights to create new content for older favorites, such as the cartoon “Liberty’s Kids,” an entertaining historical series that focuses on events such as the Boston Tea Party and Valley Forge.
Harvilicz hopes to have something special for the country’s 250th anniversary next year.
You could imagine getting some people to be the voices of George Washington and Ben Franklin, so we’re working on lining up the celebrities and politicians that would be the voices,” he said.
The new content will be old school and “will be devoid of any alternative agendas.”
It’ll just be fun, uplifting, and certainly pro-America,” Harvilicz said.
Harvilicz and Greenberg managed to put this project together despite going through a very trying time, as both lost their homes in the California fires earlier this year. As Harvilicz and his family evacuated their home, they grabbed their dog, a cat, and a rabbit. The family ended up in Florida and will eventually move to Washington as Harvilicz begins his job with the government.
The site, named after a child’s game that only took chalk and a pebble to play, is already available for parents who long for the days when cartoons were as simple as playing hopscotch on the driveway.
Harvilicz acknowledged that, in today’s world, screens are often used as electronic babysitters. With Hopscotch TV, parents don’t have to worry about what their kids are watching.
“Everybody needs, from time to time, an hour to do a Zoom call or to make dinner or whatever, and you just need to put your kid somewhere for it. You don’t have a babysitter, the other parent is busy,” he said. “You can feel safe to put them there for an hour while you do something. It’s going to be a wholesome experience that’s not going to cause any problems.”
