A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
The political economy of networked media : The revenue and concentration of communication markets in the Nordics
Authors: Sjøvaag, Helle; Falch, Morten; Tadayoni, Reza; Grönlund, Mikko; Lindberg, Tobias
Publisher: University of Gothenburg Nordicom
Publication year: 2026
Journal: Nordicom Review
Volume: 47
Issue: 1
First page : 98
Last page: 125
ISSN: 1403-1108
eISSN: 2001-5119
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2026-0006
Publication's open availability at the time of reporting: Open Access
Publication channel's open availability : Open Access publication channel
Web address : https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2026-0006
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/523357878
Self-archived copy's licence: CC BY NC ND
Self-archived copy's version: Publisher`s PDF
In this article, we consider revenue and concentration developments of Nordic media and communication sectors within the wider framework of the network Internet ecology, the aim of which is to understand and contextualise what media concentration is in today’s digital platform economy. By comparing revenue data from the telecom, content media, Internet, and backbone service sectors in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden between 2018–2022, our analysis shows that telecom is the most profitable sector, particularly wireless (mobile). Traditional content media displayed revenue recessions during Covid-19, however most sectors were recovering by 2022, and many show growth. While content media are moderately to highly concentrated across the region, telecom and core Internet services – particularly search – display the highest concentration levels overall. Finland has the most concentrated media and communications ecology, while Denmark is the least concentrated. High revenue coupled with high concentration thus indicates that small markets may benefit from concentration to attain economies of scale to enable funding of quality services in competition with global providers. The Nordic context furthermore suggests that such concentration levels are only sustainable with appropriate regulations. Our research thus shows that concentration in communication markets should be understood within context-dependent market dynamics, contributing to the political economy of communication.
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Funding information in the publication:
The data has been collected and analysed as part of a larger international effort at mapping media concentration across the world, through the Global Media and Internet Concentration (GMIC) project, funded by the Canadian Social Science and Humanities Research Council (Grönlund, 2025; Henten, 2024; Ohlsson & Lindberg, 2026; Sjøvaag, 2025).