Sanoma Corporation, Press Release, 29 November 2012 at 15:00 CET+1

Viewing TV online or via mobile devices, whenever and wherever you want, is growing rapidly. TV programs are also becoming an increasingly popular phenomena in the world of social media. As a result, Nelonen Media has decided to strengthen its resources in these new areas of TV with various senior appointments.

Nelonen Media’s video-on-demand service, Ruutu.fi, has had over 1 million viewers for five weeks in succession. During October, content available via the service was launched a total of 11.2 million times, and Ruutu achieved a record market share of 36%.

“The growth of Ruutu is being driven by our popular entertainment shows in particular,” says Nelonen Media’s President, Hans Edin. “People have watched episodes of ‘Vain elämää’ (So Much Better) a total of nearly six million times via the service, for example. More and more programmes are becoming online phenomena in the social media world, where people share videos and comment on programmes very extensively. Involvement and freedom of choice are playing an important role in the new TV.”

Ruutu was completely revamped in September, and now Nelonen Media has decided to further strengthen its commitment to video-on-demand services.

Pia Kalsta has been appointed Nelonen Media’s Director, CRM, Marketing and Business Development. She previously served as the company’s Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales. Vice President, Sales Tero Huovila will now be responsible for all of Nelonen Media’s media sales following the appointment.

“Video-on-demand services offer us a number of opportunities to expand and grow our business,” says Pia Kalsta. “We have applied for the TV rights to SM-liiga, Finland’s top professional ice hockey league, for five years beginning in autumn 2013, and we are currently planning a major multimedia product and service package based around the championship. Content that truly engages viewers and gets them talking is what the new TV is very much about.”


Nelonen Media’s Executive Management Group:
Hans Edin, President
Pia Kalsta, Director, CRM, Marketing and Business Development
Kristiina Werner-Autio, Senior Vice President, TV
Kari Laakso, Senior Vice President, Radio
Kai Taka-aho, Vice President, Online Services
Matti Lampinen, Vice President, Technology
Tero Huovila, Vice President, Sales
Miia Lillberg, Controller


Additional information
Hans Edin, President, Nelonen Media, tel. +358 (0)40 050 0489

Sanoma inspires, informs and connects. Sanoma is a leading European group with a focus on consumer media and learning. We bring information, experiences, education and entertainment to millions of people every day. We employ nearly 11,000 professionals in some 20 countries. In 2011, the Group’s restated net sales totalled EUR 2.4 billion. Sanoma shares are listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki.