The report found that 52% of Swedes aged 9–85 watched YouTube daily in 2025, an increase of five percentage points from the previous year. Elisabeth Falk, an investigator at Nordicom, said the growing popularity of YouTube stands out in this year's report. Although usage is still most widespread among younger people, the fastest increase is occurring in older age groups, according to multiple reports.
This shift highlights how digital platforms are reshaping media habits across generations. Streaming services also continued to grow. More than 70% of Swedish households now subscribe to a service such as Netflix or Spotify, the report said.
The growing popularity of YouTube stands out in this year's report. And although usage is still clearly most widespread among younger people, the fastest increase is occurring in the older age groups.
Interest in subscription streaming rose in 2025, reaching very high levels even internationally, according to the report. SVT Play and Netflix top the list of video streaming services, with daily reach of 35% and 34% respectively. TV4 Play is third with 22% daily reach.
Falk noted that it is positive that both SVT and TV4 succeed so well in competition from large American streaming services such as Netflix, Disney and HBO. The sustained growth underscores a broader shift away from scheduled programming toward on-demand content. Traditional TV is declining at an accelerating rate, the report found.
During 2025, interest in subscription streaming services online continued to rise in the Swedish population, and is now at very high levels, also in an international comparison. Here too, the fastest growth is among the elderly. This means that the digital divides regarding access to digital media offerings decreased during 2025.
TV4 has chosen to stop broadcasting its channels in the traditional terrestrial network from 2026. Falk said the decline makes it crucial for Swedish TV companies to attract audiences to their digital services, especially for TV4. This move reflects the broader industry trend as linear viewership continues to erode.
Digital divides regarding access to digital media offerings decreased in 2025, according to the report. However, emergency radio access remains low. Only 40% of Swedish households have access to a battery, solar, or crank-powered emergency radio, meaning most citizens still lack one for crisis situations.
The use of traditional TV is declining at an increasingly rapid pace, and therefore it is crucial for Swedish TV companies to attract the audience to their digital services. This applies not least to TV4, which from 2026 has chosen to stop broadcasting its channels in the traditional terrestrial network.
Jonas Ohlsson, a media researcher at Nordicom, said that despite active communication efforts from authorities, the majority still do not have access. Access is most common among the elderly, highly educated, and in rural areas, and lowest among young adults. Car radio remains the most common way to receive live radio in Sweden.
The narrowing digital divide suggests progress in media accessibility, but the low emergency radio ownership points to a persistent vulnerability in crisis preparedness.
From that perspective, it is of course positive that both SVT and TV4 succeed so well in the competition from the large American streaming services, such as Netflix, Disney and HBO.