Read up on the full press release here, with commentary from Mediavision’s CEO Marie Nilsson.

This Monday, the International Olympic Committee announced that the media rights in Europe for the four Olympic Games that will be held 2026-2032 have been given to the European Broadcasting Union (the joint organization for public service in Europe) and Warner Bros. Discovery.
 

For the Nordics, this means that DR and TV 2 will share the broadcasting rights in Denmark, Yle will broadcast the games in Finland, NRK in Norway and SVT in Sweden. Under the new agreement, Warner Bros. Discovery will hold full pay TV rights in 43 European territories, although, the Nordic countries are excluded. As the new agreement covers the 2026-2032 period, it includes the 2026 winter games in Italy, the 2028 summer games hosted by the US, the 2030 winter games, which host is still unannounced, and the summer Olympics in Australia 2032. The agreement does not include the upcoming 2024 Paris summer Olympics.
 

The Olympic Games includes several sports, though the summer games are mainly associated with athletics, and the winter games with the various skiing sports (and ice hockey in Finland and Sweden). The Olympics is also a time for viewers to find new sports, idols, and for many sports to promote themselves to a greater audience.
 

Among people 15-74 years old in the Nordics, just over 40% are interested in watching sports via television/streaming. The sport with the highest interest is football, followed by ice hockey, winter sports and athletics. The non-Olympic sport that yields the highest interest is motorsport, at 9% of interest (the same level as handball – whose world championship is currently being held in Sweden and Poland). Local variations occur, for more information, please contact Mediavision.

YouTube has reportedly started testing free ad-supported TV channels. The Alphabet-owned company is in dialogue with several entertainment companies to show its content on the new service. A small number of partners are currently testing the concept, including Lionsgate and A+E Networks.
 

Youtube is already a dominant player on the market for online video and the possible addition of ad-supported streaming TV channels will put the company in competition with companies such as Pluto TV and Roku. YouTube has already started to provide premium ad-supported content. In 2022, the streamer added free television shows that were supported by ads to its catalog in the US, and the company has been doing it with movies for years.
 

The company also has YouTube TV, a paid service that gives people a similar experience as the standard television channels. In July 2022, it was announced that YouTube TV had reached five million subscribers. No information regarding the name and placement of the new service has been released, but it is possible that the free channels would be placed under the YouTube TV brand. As the new feature is now in testing, reports say that it could roll out more widely later this year.

Millioner af abonnementsdelinger i Norden rammer Netflix hårdest – Mediawatch

Så många delar sina SVOD-abonnemang – Dagens Media

3 million Nordic VOD subscriptions ‘borrowed’ from another household – Broadband TV News
 

Tross økonomisk uro ser vi få tegn til at nordmenn vil redusere sine mediekjøp –Kampanje
 

Miljoner tittare delar på strömningsabonnemang –Sveriges Radio
 

Research: 3m in Nordics use borrowed SVOD login – Advanced Television

”Lågkonjunktur gör att människor kollar mer tv” – Svenska Dagbladet