Media Coverage
Melodifestivalen is broadcast on television, radio and the internet. It is broadcast on SVT1 with international coverage on SVT World. Until 1987, the competition was broadcast on Sveriges Radio TV, later known as TV1. Between 1988 and 1999, the event was broadcast on different channels depending on where it was held. Finals in Stockholm were broadcast on Kanal 1 (formerly TV1) while finals in Gothenburg or Malmö were broadcast on TV2. Sveriges Radio has broadcast the event on P1, P3 and P4, where is currently broadcast.
Although the final is traditionally held on a Saturday, in 1990 it was held on a Friday. TV2 suggested this would attract more viewers. In 1991, it was held on Easter Sunday for the same reason. The 2002 final was delayed by a week for coverage of the 2002 Winter Olympics.
The competition has had an official website since 1999. Webcasts have been provided since 2005. Since 2006, between February and the Eurovision final in May, SR has webcast a radio station dedicated to the competition called P4 Melodifest. On P4, the public previews semifinalists every Friday. Broadcast the night after the final, a dagen efter ("the day after") television programme acts as an epilogue to the event. It gauges the reactions of the finalists after the competition's climax. No commentary is given for the event on television. Carolina Norén is commentator on the event for Sveriges Radio. The festival has been broadcast in widescreen since 2002 and Dolby Digital since 2004.
The competition's viewing figures have been rising since 2002. In 2007, approximately 4.1 million Swedes—almost 44% of the country's population—watched the final, and between 2.9 million and 3.2 million viewers watched each of the semifinals. The viewing figures for the 2007 festival are nearly two million short of the highest recorded viewing figures from 1990. Melodifestivalen is given heavy coverage in the Swedish press. A study by the Economic Science and Communication Department at Karlstad University concluded that coverage from the press may have influenced the results of the 2007 festival.
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