Analyst Comment

Ad investments fell significantly in December

Translation: Original published in Finnish on 02/02/2026 at 06:40 am EET

According to statistics published by Kantar, the volume of Finnish media advertising decreased by as much as 9% year-on-year in December, and thus the development for last year was -3%.

The decline continued in key media groups

Examining by media type, the contraction was strong in print newspaper media, in line with market trends, declining by 18% from the comparison period. Television advertising also contracted exceptionally sharply (-18%), while radio advertising decreased by 7% year-on-year. Online media, which benefits from the digital transition, also decreased by a significant 4% year on year in December. At the same time, outdoor advertising continued its strong performance, growing 7% year-on-year. Among advertiser groups, brand and retail advertising both decreased by 10%, while classified advertising saw a more moderate decline of 1%.

According to our calculations, based on the latest published annual figures (2024), Finnish media advertising accounted for around 16% of Sanoma's and around 18% of Alma Media's revenue. For Keskisuomalainen, the figure is significantly higher, as media advertising accounted for 34% of the company's revenue (2024). Thus, the development of media advertising is a relevant driver for the companies. As a result of Ilkka's acquisition of Kaleva, the development of the media market does not directly affect its operating figures, but through its associate company, Kaleva's development affects the Group's EPS.

The media advertising market developed more sluggishly than we estimated throughout Q4'25, which may put moderate downward pressure on our company-specific advertising revenue estimates for the quarter. However, we would like to remind you that the company-specific development of media businesses may differ from the overall market development, as the relative shares of different media categories vary significantly between companies, and the growth of media categories is very unevenly distributed. We will review our company-specific estimates at the latest in connection with the Q4 earnings previews.