Sweden has one of the highest frequencies of newspaper readership in the world. Local and regional morning papers, which constitute the base, are primarily distributed on a subscription basis. Nearly seven households in ten subscribe to a morning paper. Alongside these traditional morning papers, free dailies have assumed considerable importance in Swedish society (Figure 1). In 2007, about every fifth Swede reads a free daily.
Figure 1 Regular readership in Sweden, 1986-2007 (percent)
Source: National SOM survey, an annual survey conducted in Sweden among persons in the 15-85 age bracket.
Note: Free dailies were not included in surveys prior to 1998. The results show the percentages of all respondents reading at least one morning paper at least five days a week, at least one evening paper at least three days a week and at least one free daily at least three days a week..
There has been a decline in readership for morning papers distributed through subscriptions for the past 20 years, but it is modest with consideration to how much has happened in the Swedish media market: Deregulation of the entire broadcasting media system at the end of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, the founding of free daily newspapers and the development of the Internet in the mid-1990s.
The largest decline is among the evening papers - the tabloids sold one copy at a time. Readership for these is half of what it was 20 years ago, but on the other hand, one of the evening papers has the most popular Swedish news website.
Since Metro started in Stockholm in 1995, many more free dailies have come about, both in Sweden and abroad. The Stenbeck-owned Metro is in the three major Swedish cities - Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö - and there is also a national edition. Bonnier-owned City is also in Stockholm and Malmö, and Schibsted-owned Punkt se is in all three of the major cities. There are also two local free dailies - one in Norrköping/Linköping and one in Helsingborg. Both of the latter are owned by the local morning papers in the region.
Readership of daily newspapers has increased overall. If free dailies are included in the morning paper definition, the results are entirely different than if they were excluded.
Figure 2: Regular readership, both excluding and including free dailies as morning papers, 2007 (percent)
Source: National and Western SOM, an annual survey conducted both for the entire country and the western part of Sweden in particular of persons in the 15-85 age bracket.
Note: The results show readership percentages for all respondents who read at least three days a week except those in Gothenburg, where the results are for four days a week.
In Stockholm, for example, the difference if free dailies are included or not is about 25 percentage points. It can be said to be the free dailies' "contribution" to the newspaper market. This entails that many read both a paper for which they subscribe and a free daily in the morning.
Contrary to what one might believe, people have not abandoned morning paper subscriptions in favour of the free dailies to any greater degree. Approximately 65 percent of Stockholmers read a morning paper before Metro and the other free dailies were started. Readership has thus increased overall.
As in many other countries, there are considerable age and generation differences in regard to media consumption. Figure 3 shows an example of the age differences in respect to reading of various types of morning newspapers in the Stockholm region.
Figure 3 Readership by age for morning papers distributed on a subscription basis and free dailies in the Stockholm region, 2007 (percent)
Source: National SOM.
Note: The results show the percentages of all respondents reading at least one morning paper at least five days a week and at least one free daily at least three days a week.
Free dailies have a stronger position among younger readers than traditional morning papers provided on a subscription basis, while the opposite is true among older readers. The young have grown up in a different media landscape than the older readers. News is available on many TV and radio channels, on the Internet and in the print media. However, it is clear that younger people are still attracted to conventional newspapers as a phenomenon - as long as they do not have to pay for them.
Ingela Wadbring, Ph.D.
Researcher at the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Gothenburg
Figure 1 Regular readership in Sweden, 1986-2007 (percent)
Source: National SOM survey, an annual survey conducted in Sweden among persons in the 15-85 age bracket.
Note: Free dailies were not included in surveys prior to 1998. The results show the percentages of all respondents reading at least one morning paper at least five days a week, at least one evening paper at least three days a week and at least one free daily at least three days a week..
There has been a decline in readership for morning papers distributed through subscriptions for the past 20 years, but it is modest with consideration to how much has happened in the Swedish media market: Deregulation of the entire broadcasting media system at the end of the 1980s and beginning of the 1990s, the founding of free daily newspapers and the development of the Internet in the mid-1990s.
The largest decline is among the evening papers - the tabloids sold one copy at a time. Readership for these is half of what it was 20 years ago, but on the other hand, one of the evening papers has the most popular Swedish news website.
Since Metro started in Stockholm in 1995, many more free dailies have come about, both in Sweden and abroad. The Stenbeck-owned Metro is in the three major Swedish cities - Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö - and there is also a national edition. Bonnier-owned City is also in Stockholm and Malmö, and Schibsted-owned Punkt se is in all three of the major cities. There are also two local free dailies - one in Norrköping/Linköping and one in Helsingborg. Both of the latter are owned by the local morning papers in the region.
Readership of daily newspapers has increased overall. If free dailies are included in the morning paper definition, the results are entirely different than if they were excluded.
Figure 2: Regular readership, both excluding and including free dailies as morning papers, 2007 (percent)
Source: National and Western SOM, an annual survey conducted both for the entire country and the western part of Sweden in particular of persons in the 15-85 age bracket.
Note: The results show readership percentages for all respondents who read at least three days a week except those in Gothenburg, where the results are for four days a week.
In Stockholm, for example, the difference if free dailies are included or not is about 25 percentage points. It can be said to be the free dailies' "contribution" to the newspaper market. This entails that many read both a paper for which they subscribe and a free daily in the morning.
Contrary to what one might believe, people have not abandoned morning paper subscriptions in favour of the free dailies to any greater degree. Approximately 65 percent of Stockholmers read a morning paper before Metro and the other free dailies were started. Readership has thus increased overall.
As in many other countries, there are considerable age and generation differences in regard to media consumption. Figure 3 shows an example of the age differences in respect to reading of various types of morning newspapers in the Stockholm region.
Figure 3 Readership by age for morning papers distributed on a subscription basis and free dailies in the Stockholm region, 2007 (percent)
Source: National SOM.
Note: The results show the percentages of all respondents reading at least one morning paper at least five days a week and at least one free daily at least three days a week.
Free dailies have a stronger position among younger readers than traditional morning papers provided on a subscription basis, while the opposite is true among older readers. The young have grown up in a different media landscape than the older readers. News is available on many TV and radio channels, on the Internet and in the print media. However, it is clear that younger people are still attracted to conventional newspapers as a phenomenon - as long as they do not have to pay for them.
Ingela Wadbring, Ph.D.
Researcher at the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Gothenburg