The year when Norway took the media

We are about to close 2021. A very special year, but also a good media year in many ways. Among other things, Norwegian digital media companies flexed their muscles in competition with the multinational giants.

There is still a long way to go to match the turnover of media and technology giants Facebook, Google and others. But we have started to catch up. We no longer sit back and watch the international giants run off with the advertising dollars on our own home turf.

We must honestly admit that multinational companies such as Netflix, Facebook, Google and others have helped themselves to a generous slice of the Norwegian media cake in recent years. In fact, they account for more than 30 percent of the total advertising pie in this country. That's around NOK 7.5 billion.

However, the figures are not exact, as it is difficult to present accurate figures for their actual turnover in Norway. GroupM in Norway estimated that Facebook, Google and SnapChat had a combined turnover of NOK 7.15 billion in 2020. There is reason to believe that they are now well on the way to NOK 8 billion.

It's not only in the advertising market that multinationals have made their mark. They have also been anything but modest when it comes to media subscription revenues. Netflix, HBO, Disney and others have not exactly been standing on the sidelines either.

There are several reasons why Norwegian and Nordic companies have now shifted from working on defense to attack.

Norwegian media companies have invested and invested heavily in digital in recent years. Innovation and technology are one thing. Another important thing is the focus on content - and Norwegian content adapted to Norwegians. We shouldn't be beaten on our own home turf.

The undersigned represents Aller Media, which is one of the companies that is doing well at the moment. But also competitors such as Schibsted, Amedia, Polaris, Egmont and others - all with strong affiliations and strong traditions in this country - are showing aggressiveness and a strong approach.

On the one hand, we compete, and on the other hand, we have ambitions to recapture advertising dollars and shares that have disappeared to the rest of the world.

We Norwegian media players have now developed many advantages and added value.

We have come a long way in relation to logged-in systems where Norwegians have shown trust in us by registering personal data. This is data that makes us competitive as an advertising carrier, as we gain far greater knowledge about our traffic - and can thus target advertising in our media houses. For the advertiser, this results in better and more cost-effective advertising. We reach the people the advertiser wants to reach.

But the data is also important for the editorial development of Norwegian websites. With more information about traffic and the people who traffic on and between websites, we can develop and present content that is even more attractive. In short: create better content. We see this being done - both here at Aller Media and by our Norwegian competitors.

Central to everything we do are the concepts of trust and credibility. If consumers are to give us their data, we must act with credibility so that we gain their trust. Trust is something we can't buy. It's something we have to earn - whether it's about consumers giving us data or consumers choosing our content.

The Norwegian media companies are strong in the area of trust and credibility. We have been there for a number of years. We know the people. We know what they want - and we know what they like and don't like.

Credibility is also extremely important for advertisers. They need to be confident that their messages are delivered in a credible environment. Brands should be treated with respect. They deserve to be in quality environments.

Not only do we see that Norwegian media are on the offensive. But I think we can also say that editorial media are on the offensive. This is particularly important given the role that editorial media play in our democracy. Editorial media question, manage and develop our democracy.

But creating good and important content costs money. It is therefore important that Norwegian media develop ever better content, but also strengthen existing content and develop new revenue streams. At Aller Media, we have been looking for 80 new employees this fall, both editorial and commercial, precisely to become even stronger.

We also appreciate that the Minister for Culture and Equality, Anette Trettebergstuen, has thrown herself into the fight to gain more control over the multinational media and technology giants. She wants to unite the Nordic Region in the fight against them. She is tired of them barely paying taxes and removing content they don't like.

Hopefully, 2021 will be remembered as the media year where we who represent the Norwegian media strengthened our confidence and pride - and started to regain some of what we have lost in recent years.

While 2022 will be remembered as the year we went even more on the offensive - and really got to grips with revenue streams.

Something positive is happening - and we're taking that into 2022!