Cricket Media
Cricket Media is a private education media company that produces award-winning children's magazines, the Sensical streaming platform, Reading Stars app, audiobooks, eMentoring programs, and a 100,000+ asset Digital Asset Library. It serves families, schools, corporate sponsors, and EdTech licensing partners globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1973
- HeadquartersMclean, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Cricket Media does
Cricket Media, founded in 1973 and headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is a private education media company that develops award-winning print magazines, digital platforms, streaming video, audiobooks, eMentoring programs, and content licensing services for children and families. Its core product portfolio comprises nine magazine brands covering children ages 0–14 (BABYBUG, LADYBUG, SPIDER, CRICKET, plus the former ASK, CLICK, MUSE, FACES, COBBLESTONE titles), the Sensical free kids streaming app and CTV/FAST channels, the Reading Stars mobile reading app, and a 100,000+ asset Digital Asset Library (DAL) powered by Widen for licensing to EdTech, publishers, assessment developers, and AI learning companies. The CricketTogether and TryEngineering Together eMentoring programs connect corporate-sponsor volunteers with students in grades 3–8 through a COPPA-compliant secure platform moderated by teachers.
The business model is multi-stream. Consumer revenue comes from magazine subscriptions (annual billing), a freemium Reading Stars app, and audiobook sales via Audible. Institutional revenue is generated by bulk classroom magazine sales at $15.99 per subscription for 20+ copies and standards-aligned curriculum units. Enterprise revenue flows from corporate eMentoring sponsorships (15+ named sponsors including ADP, TIAA, Hitachi, Centene, Ansys) and from B2B content licensing against the DAL, including rights for AI-driven learning solutions. Sensical monetizes through a proprietary contextual ad network across CTV, FAST, and YouTube. Distribution spans owned storefronts on Shopify, iOS/Android app stores, Amazon Prime Video Channels, Audible, and a global licensing channel. Cricket Media Services, Inc. is the parent entity; Cricket Media, Inc. is the operating subsidiary, with wholly-owned subsidiaries including In2Books, ePals, NeuLingo/Cricket eLearning, and the CricketTogether platform. No external investor or parent-company ownership is disclosed.
Cricket Media firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cricket Media
- Legal name
- Cricket Media, Inc.
- Website
- https://cricketmedia.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1973
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Cricket Media is a private education media company that produces award-winning children's magazines, the Sensical streaming platform, Reading Stars app, audiobooks, eMentoring programs, and a 100,000+ asset Digital Asset Library. It serves families, schools, corporate sponsors, and EdTech licensing partners globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cricket Media industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Children's Educational Media
- NAICS
- Book Publishers (51313), Periodical Publishers (513120), Broadcasting and Content Providers (516), Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Children’s Digital & Interactive Publishing (E-books, Apps, Enhanced Content) (MPAJAFAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Children’s Subscription & Book Club Publishing (MPAJAFAO), E-book Retail & Reading Platforms (Stores, Apps, Devices) (MPAJAMAA), Audiobook Retail & Subscription Platforms (Direct-to-Consumer) (MPAJAIAD), Children’s Nonfiction Publishing (MPAJAFAE)
Keywords
Where Cricket Media is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Mclean
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cricket Media business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Magazine Subscriptions: Print magazine subscriptions for children ages 0-14 including Babybug, Ladybug, Spider, Cricket, Ask, Click, Muse, Cobblestone, and Faces. Sold directly to consumers and in bulk to schools/institutions at $15.99/subscription for 20+ copies.
- Streaming Video (Sensical): Free streaming platform with thousands of age-appropriate videos curated by child development experts. Revenue generated through advertising via proprietary contextual ad network across CTV, FAST, and YouTube.
- Digital Apps (Reading Stars): Interactive reading app featuring Cricket's Lexile-matched books, quizzes, and gamified rewards for building reading skills.
- Audiobooks: Audiobook sales and streaming through Audible and other platforms, featuring Cricket's award-winning stories in screen-free format.
- eMentoring Programs: CricketTogether and TryEngineering Together programs sponsored by corporations whose employees serve as volunteer eMentors. Programs are free to schools; revenue generated through corporate sponsorships.
- Content Licensing: Licensing of 100,000+ content assets to EdTech platforms, educational publishers, assessment developers, AI learning companies, and book publishers worldwide. Flexible licensing including worldwide rights, multi-year terms, various formats.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Annual | Institutional bulk magazine pricing for schools and districts |
| Subscription | Annual | Consumer magazine subscriptions |
| Freemium | Monthly | Reading Stars digital app |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels8 records
Marketing channels8 records
Cricket Media product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cricket Media produces and distributes award-winning children's educational media across multiple formats: print magazines for ages 0–14 (Babybug, Ladybug, Spider, Cricket), the Sensical free kids' streaming app and CTV/FAST channels, the Reading Stars interactive reading app, Cricket Audiobooks (via Audible), and CricketTogether and TryEngineering Together eMentoring programs for grades 3–8. It also licenses more than 100,000 rights-cleared content assets through its Digital Asset Library to EdTech platforms, publishers, and AI-driven learning companies.
Product overview
Cricket Media is a multi-platform kids and family media company offering print magazines, streaming video, digital apps, audiobooks, eMentoring programs, and content licensing. The core product portfolio includes award-winning magazines spanning ages 0–14 (BABYBUG, LADYBUG, SPIDER, CRICKET, and consolidated former titles ASK, CLICK, MUSE, FACES, COBBLESTONE), the Sensical streaming video platform with CTV/FAST channels, the Reading Stars mobile reading app, Cricket Audiobooks, CricketTogether/TryEngineering Together eMentoring programs, and a Digital Asset Library for content licensing. The company also operates ePals Global Community, Cricket eLearning (NeuLingo), and offers institutional classroom magazine sales and advertising/sponsorship opportunities. Products are distributed via company-owned channels (websites, apps) and third-party platforms including Amazon (Prime Video Channels, Audible), Shopify e-commerce, and mobile app stores.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- CricketTogether: Literacy eMentoring program connecting students in grades 3-8 with volunteer eMentors through safe online correspondence
- TryEngineering Together
- Sensical
- Reading Stars
- NeuLingo
- ePals
- News-O-Matic
- Babybug
- Ladybug
- Spider
- Cricket
- ASK
- Click
- Cobblestone
- Faces
- Muse
Products and services
- Babybug Magazine Award-winning print magazine for babies and toddlers ages 0–3 featuring rich vocabulary, enchanting artwork, fingerplays, games, and simple activities designed for reading aloud together with caregivers.
- Ladybug Magazine Print magazine for ages 3–6 featuring captivating read-aloud stories, poetry, nonfiction, and hands-on activities; now expanded to include former Click content.
- Spider Magazine Print magazine for emerging readers ages 6–9 featuring richly illustrated stories, poems, folk tales, comics, activities, and nonfiction; now expanded to include former Ask content.
- Cricket Magazine Award-winning literary magazine for ages 9–14 featuring fiction, nonfiction, poetry, STEM discoveries, and art from acclaimed writers and illustrators; now expanded to include former Muse, Faces, and Cobblestone content.
- Sensical Streaming Platform Free, kids-safe streaming app and CTV/FAST channel network featuring thousands of age-appropriate videos curated by child development experts (not algorithms), organized by age and topic, with parental controls.
- Reading Stars App Interactive mobile reading app helping children build reading fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension, featuring thousands of Lexile-matched books, quizzes, and daily rewards to encourage reading habits.
- Cricket Audiobooks Audiobook library bringing Cricket magazine stories to life through immersive narration; features screen-free listening, diverse content, and educational alignment, distributed through Audible and Amazon.
- CricketTogether eMentoring 1:1 eMentoring program connecting adult volunteers with students in grades 3–5 through online letter exchanges about curated reading content; free for schools, with corporate sponsor support.
- TryEngineering Together eMentoring STEM-focused eMentoring program in partnership with IEEE, connecting engineering professionals with students in grades 3–8 through reading and correspondence about STEM topics.
- Content Licensing (Digital Asset Library) Licensing of Cricket Media's 100,000+ content assets including stories, articles, illustrations, and nonfiction to publishing, EdTech, AI, and consumer product partners worldwide via the Widen-powered platform with flexible worldwide and multi-year licensing terms.
- NeuLingo Children's language learning platform offering 1:1 and group online tutoring sessions, operated under Cricket eLearning.
- ePals Global Community Global learning community connecting classrooms and students internationally for collaborative projects, with moderated user-generated content.
- Classroom Bulk Magazine Program Institutional sales of print Cricket magazines at discounted pricing ($15.99 per subscription for 20+ copies) for classroom use, with standards alignment to Common Core, NGSS, C3, and NHES.
Quantifiable outcome
- 63% improvement in students self-reporting being 'good' or 'very good' at reading; 69% improvement in students self-reporting being 'good' or 'very good' at writing
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Cricket Media
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Cricket Media technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration6 records
Feature5 records
Cricket Media partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
22 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- News-O-MaticcoreContent licensing partnership bringing News-O-Matic's award-winning daily news content for kids into Cricket Media's licensing library. Enhances Cricket's nonfiction offerings with timely, age-appropriate current events content for education publishers, EdTech platforms, and AI learning solutions.
- IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)corePartnership for TryEngineering Together STEM eMentoring program. IEEE partners with Cricket Media to provide STEM professional eMentors for students in grades 3-8, emphasizing engineering careers and applications.
- MENTORsupportingEstablished in response to COVID-19 pandemic, partnership with MENTOR provides Virtual Mentoring Portals supporting mentoring organizations seeking online solutions to safely connect mentors and mentees.
- Hopewell Fund / Learning Together Project Fundsupporting501(c)(3) donation path enabling tax-deductible charitable contributions to support CricketTogether eMentoring programs for underserved students.
- ADPsupportingCorporate sponsor providing employee volunteers as eMentors through the CricketTogether platform.
- AnsyssupportingCorporate sponsor supporting TryEngineering Together STEM eMentoring with employee volunteers.
- AppFiresupportingCorporate sponsor providing employee volunteers for eMentoring programs.
- Big Brothers Big Sisters of San JosesupportingMentoring organization partner collaborating on Virtual Mentoring Portals initiative.
- Farmers InsurancesupportingCorporate sponsor providing employee volunteers as eMentors through CricketTogether.
- HitachisupportingCorporate sponsor supporting eMentoring programs with employee volunteers.
- Learning.comsupportingCorporate sponsor providing employee volunteers for eMentoring programs.
- QuinlysupportingCorporate sponsor providing employee volunteers for eMentoring programs.
- TenarissupportingCorporate sponsor supporting eMentoring programs with employee volunteers.
- AerosupportingCorporate sponsor for CricketTogether eMentoring program.
- TIAAsupportingCorporate sponsor providing employee volunteers for eMentoring programs.
- The Great CoursessupportingCorporate sponsor (The Great Courses / Wondrium) supporting eMentoring with employee volunteers. CEO Paul Suijk quoted on program value.
- CentenesupportingCorporate sponsor for CricketTogether eMentoring program.
- United Way of Midland CountysupportingCommunity organization partner supporting eMentoring programs.
- WondriumsupportingCorporate sponsor (Wondrium / The Great Courses) providing employee volunteers for eMentoring.
- CotivitisupportingCorporate sponsor for CricketTogether eMentoring program.
- WestDigisupportingCorporate sponsor supporting eMentoring programs.
- EpsilonsupportingCorporate sponsor for CricketTogether eMentoring program.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cricket Media competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- Common Sense Media: Common Sense Media is the leading independent children's media review and ratings organization. Connected to Cricket via the February 2025 acquisition of Common Sense Networks, and adjacent as a complementary trusted-content authority in the kids media ecosystem.
Direct peers
- TIME for Kids: TIME for Kids produces news and nonfiction magazines for K-6 students with classroom subscription model. Comparable to Cricket's institutional magazine sales to schools and to News-O-Matic's age-appropriate daily news content now in Cricket's library.
- Ranger Rick (National Wildlife Federation): Ranger Rick publishes nature-focused children's magazines (Ranger Rick, Ranger Rick Jr., Ranger Rick Cub) with subscription model for ages 0-12. Closely comparable to Cricket's Spider and Cricket magazines in age targeting, parent-paid subscription economics, and nature/science nonfiction content.
- National Geographic Kids: National Geographic Kids publishes award-winning children's magazines (Nat Geo Kids) and digital content focused on nature, science, and culture. Directly comparable to Cricket's nonfiction magazines like Cobblestone, Ask, and Click, with similar brand authority and educational positioning.
- Highlights for Children: Highlights is a direct competitor publishing Highlights, High Five, and Hello magazines for children, with similar age-segmented subscription model and decades-long brand heritage. Highly comparable to Cricket's magazine subscription business, target demographic (0-12), and parent-trusted positioning.
Emerging players
- Epic!: Epic! is a digital reading platform for kids 12 and under with 40,000+ books, audiobooks, and learning videos. Comparable to Cricket's Reading Stars app and audiobook offerings as a subscription-based digital reading platform, with broader library but less curated editorial control.
- Newsela: Newsela licenses leveled nonfiction content to K-12 schools and EdTech platforms, with AI-driven reading level adaptation. Comparable to Cricket's Digital Asset Library business model, content licensing to EdTech/AI partners, and Lexile-tagged nonfiction offerings.
- Khan Academy Kids: Khan Academy Kids is a free, well-funded digital learning app for ages 2-8 covering literacy, math, and SEL. Comparable to Cricket's Reading Stars app as a digital reading/literacy platform for young children, though positioned as free vs. Cricket's freemium model.
Broad incumbents
- Scholastic: Scholastic is a large, established children's book publisher and classroom magazine operator (Scholastic News, Storyworks) serving schools and families. Comparable to Cricket as a major children's educational content company with magazine, book, and digital products, though broader in scale and more diversified into book fairs and book clubs.
- PBS Kids: PBS Kids is the public broadcaster's children's media brand offering free TV, streaming, apps, and educational games trusted by parents. Comparable to Cricket's Sensical streaming platform as a child-safe, ad-supported educational video destination, though PBS Kids has significantly greater brand recognition and free content scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cricket Media social profiles
Digital presenceCricket Media compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Cricket Media financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cricket Media leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Cricket Media subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries6 records
Cricket Media funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cricket Media M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cricket Media
What does Cricket Media do?
Cricket Media produces and distributes award-winning children's educational media across multiple formats: print magazines for ages 0–14 (Babybug, Ladybug, Spider, Cricket), the Sensical free kids' streaming app and CTV/FAST channels, the Reading Stars interactive reading app, Cricket Audiobooks (via Audible), and CricketTogether and TryEngineering Together eMentoring programs for grades 3–8. It also licenses more than 100,000 rights-cleared content assets through its Digital Asset Library to EdTech platforms, publishers, and AI-driven learning companies.
Is Cricket Media a public or private company?
Cricket Media is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Cricket Media founded?
Cricket Media was founded in 1973. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Cricket Media based?
Cricket Media is headquartered in Mclean, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cricket Media make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Magazine Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are streaming Video (Sensical), digital Apps (Reading Stars), audiobooks, eMentoring Programs and content Licensing.
Who are Cricket Media's main competitors?
Common Sense Media is listed as an others. Direct peers are TIME for Kids, Ranger Rick (National Wildlife Federation), National Geographic Kids and Highlights for Children. Emerging players are Epic!, Newsela and Khan Academy Kids. Broad incumbents are Scholastic and PBS Kids.
Does Cricket Media have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cricket Media.
What industry is Cricket Media in?
Cricket Media's product category is Children's Educational Media. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAFAJ, Children’s Digital & Interactive Publishing (E-books, Apps, Enhanced Content), with a secondary code of MPAJAFAO, Children’s Subscription & Book Club Publishing. Its NAICS code is 51313 and its SIC code is 2731.