Finland

01Changes since the 2025 report

As reported in the previous update, work to align national legislation with the EMFA began in October 2024. This process led to the adoption of the Act on the Supervision of Media Markets, along with amendments to several existing laws. The changes were designed to ensure compliance with the EMFA’s core provisions while introducing only limited additional requirements. The main exception was the revised Act on Yleisradio, which introduced additional transparency obligations for public service media. Both the new Act and the legislative amendments entered into force on 8 August 2025.

From the outset, the Ministry of Transport and Communications indicated that it would implement the EMFA at a minimum level, making full use of the discretion available to Member States. In its resolution, Parliament called on the Government to closely monitor the effects of the new regulatory framework and, where necessary, take measures to safeguard media pluralism and the sector’s financial operating capacity.¹

In the initial stage of EMFA implementation, Traficom (the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency) was designated as the supervisory authority, and key developments in Finland’s 2026 EMFA implementation relate to Traficom’s new role.

Traficom is now tasked with three specific areas of supervision: maintaining a database of media companies’ ownership, monitoring mergers and acquisitions, and reporting on public-sector purchases of state advertising. In addition, Traficom participates in the work of the new European Board for Media Services (EBMS), as resources allow. In practice, this means Traficom mainly has a monitoring role, with limited opportunities for active participation. Participation also takes place almost exclusively remotely. Despite these additional responsibilities, Traficom did not receive any additional funding.² Even so, Traficom has executed the following actions in 2026:

Media Oversight Customer Service addressing the implementation of EMFA. Traficom has created a contact form for inquiries regarding media oversight matters concerning organizations, providing answers to them in Finnish, Swedish, and English.³

Media ownership database. Media companies must publish ownership information on their websites and report it to Traficom. Based on this information, Traficom maintains an ownership database on its website. It was last updated on 28 May 2026.⁴

Reporting on state advertising. Every public authority or public-sector body must publish annual information on the advertising it has purchased, broken down by media service provider. The EMFA leaves the report’s precise content, format and scope open. It also does not require maintaining or publishing a database. Traficom produces an annual report on state advertising: the first report will be published in early 2027 and will cover data from 2026.⁵

Assessment of mergers and acquisitions. National and regional media concentration in Finland remains a key concern under the EMFA.⁶ One media merger has been assessed by Traficom by September 2026.

Traficom conducts its assessments from several perspectives: effects on media pluralism, safeguards for editorial independence, and the company’s financial sustainability. Traficom has 65 working days to carry out the assessment. At the end of the assessment period, an assessment memorandum or opinion will be prepared and published online. A negative opinion is intended to have a guiding effect. However, the legislation was deliberately not designed to give Traficom the power to prohibit mergers and acquisitions outright. Traficom has published a webpage that explains the process⁷ and includes a guide for reporting.⁸

The parties to the merger to be assessed were Otava Oy, the acquiring party, and Alma Media Oyj, the other party. Otava Oy is a Finnish family-owned media group, best known as a major book publisher. The Otava Group also includes magazines and digital media (Otavamedia) and educational services (Otava Learning).⁹ Alma Media Oyj is a listed Finnish media and digital-services company, including Alma News Media, Alma Careers and Alma Marketplace. These businesses include news and business media, large digital marketplaces, and recruitment and marketplace businesses in several European countries. In Finland, Alma’s business operations include housing and automotive marketplaces, financial and professional media, national consumer media, and content and data services for professionals and businesses.¹⁰

Otava announced on 24 February 2026 that it had agreed to acquire 700,000 shares in Alma Media Corporation.¹¹ The transaction would provide Otava with effective control over Alma Media, and its closing was conditional on approval by the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (FCCA). On 28 April 2026, the FCCA approved the merger, and Traficom received notification of the merger to begin assessment.¹²

Otava is a diversified media group acquiring Alma Media, a major news, business-media and digital-platform group; hence the merger was relevant to the EMFA-stipulated assessment. Otava’s ownership in Alma Media increased to 33,008,246 shares, representing approximately 40 percent of all shares.¹³

Traficom submitted its own evaluation on 26 July 2026.¹⁴ Overall, according to Traficom, the EU Commission’s Rule of Law Report contains no findings on the diversity or freedom of the media markets that would affect its assessment of this merger. Furthermore, under the EMFA, the national regulatory authority must consult the EBMS on its draft assessment if a concentration in the media market is likely to affect the functioning of the internal market for media services. Traficom found that Alma Media’s international activities do not warrant such consultation. Traficom’s evaluation of Otava’s reporting on the merger is in agreement with the key arguments, with few and minor additional comments.

Impact on media pluralismEMFA Art. 22

In its assessment, Traficom found that Otava has comprehensively addressed the effects of the transaction on media pluralism. The magazine publishing market will remain competitive and pluralistic following the transaction and will not change, particularly given that Otava already held a stake in Alma Media prior to this transaction. The following are Otava’s arguments, as depicted and agreed on by Traficom:

Otava and Alma Media operate in highly competitive media markets, and the transaction will therefore not reduce media ownership pluralism. Following the transaction, the markets will continue to include several independent and competing media companies.

In assessing content pluralism, the diversity of topics and genres represented in the media, such as news, culture and entertainment, as well as the visibility of minorities, different language groups and regions in media content, must be considered. While Otava’s media publishing is mostly for general consumers (women’s magazines, hobby magazines and so on), Alma Media’s products mostly target business and technology professionals. From the perspective of content pluralism, as well as cultural and language pluralism, the parties’ media services reach different audiences and respond to different information needs through distinct types of content and, consequently, different target audiences for their publications. In addition, magazine publishing cannot be considered in terms of localism, and both parties publish in Finnish; that is, no changes in language diversity. Traficom nevertheless notes that media ownership concentration itself poses risks to media diversity and pluralism, even though the companies’ magazines target different audiences.

In assessing economic pluralism, Traficom reiterated that it considers the different business models in the market, such as public services, advertising-funded business models and subscription-based business models. Traficom found no challenges to economic pluralism, as Otava and Alma would continue with their existing business models.

In assessing technological pluralism, the diversity of different technologies, such as television, radio, the internet and social media, as well as the public’s equal access to different media channels, must be considered. Magazine publishing is in constant flux, but this merger will not impact accessibility and delivery formats.

Safeguards for editorial independenceEMFA Art. 22

Overall, Traficom states that the merger will not threaten editorial independence at Otava and Alma Media, as evident in the pluralism assessment and the reported commitment of the parties, among other things, to the journalists’ guidelines and ethical codes by the Media Council. Traficom notes that if the parties continue to keep their editorial teams separate, that would help to ensure both pluralism and independence.

Assessment of economic sustainabilityEMFA Art. 22

According to Traficom’s assessment, both parties to the transaction are financially sustainable companies and, from an economic perspective, could have continued operating as separate entities. Accordingly, neither company’s weak financial position is considered to be a key reason for the transaction. Otava has already been a shareholder in Alma Media and has gradually increased its ownership stake.

02Has the situation improved?

03Outstanding problems

Media regulatorsAVMSD Art. 30

Traficom and KAVI remain independent in law and practice, but Traficom took on three new areas of supervision without new resources, and its role on the European Board for Media Services is limited to monitoring.

Public service mediaEMFA Art. 5

Yle remains trusted and structurally independent, but the 2025–2027 funding index freeze recorded in the 2025 report continues to drive restructuring. Also, Yle’s VAT rate increases had been decided upon, from 10% to 13.5% in 2026, an additional financial pressure for the public service media organization.¹⁵ Political debates about further funding cuts, and Yle’s role in general, have continued, albeit relatively mutely.¹⁶

State funds and state advertisingEMFA Art. 25

Not a systemic risk: state advertising is marginal and largely municipal, and the transparency framework is untested until the first report in early 2027.

Ownership transparency and pluralismEMFA Art. 6 & 22

The principal risk, unchanged. A small market is dominated by a handful of players, merger review measures competition rather than pluralism, and Traficom cannot block a transaction.

AI Disclosure: AI was used to translate Finnish-language documents, and the translations were then checked and, in most cases, further edited.