Sveriges Television (SVT)

Sveriges Television AB is Sweden’s public-service television broadcaster, with origins in regular television broadcasting launched on 4 September 1956. It is owned by Förvaltningsstiftelsen, the foundation that also owns Sveriges Radio and Sveriges Utbildningsradio. Since 2019 its principal funding has come from an income-based public service fee.

Media assets

Television: SVT1, SVT2, SVT Barn, SVT24 and Kunskapskanalen

Digital: SVT Play and svt.se

SVT Barn and SVT24 are distinct programme services that share transmission capacity. Kunskapskanalen is operated jointly with Sveriges Utbildningsradio. High-definition versions of existing channels should not be counted as additional services.

The terrestrial broadcasting licence requires reception to be available to at least 99.8 per cent of Sweden’s permanently resident population. This is a coverage requirement, rather than a measure of audience use.

Ownership and governance

SVT is a limited company wholly owned by Förvaltningsstiftelsen för Sveriges Radio AB, Sveriges Television AB och Sveriges Utbildningsradio AB. The foundation’s purpose is to protect the broadcasters’ independence by separating ownership from direct government control. It appoints SVT’s chair and other shareholder-appointed directors; employee representatives are appointed separately. The foundation does not determine programmes or allocate public service funding.

Political institutions retain a role in the foundation’s appointments. Its board comprises a chair and 12 other members, all appointed by the government. The 12 ordinary members are nominated by parliamentary parties, with all parties represented and seats distributed proportionately. The chair serves four years and other members eight, with staggered appointments intended to prevent an election from immediately changing the entire board. Caroline af Ugglas chairs the foundation for 2024 to 2027.

A new Public Service Act governs the current mandate. Law 2025:986, effective from 2 December 2025, consolidated provisions on the public-service remit, independence, financing, programme review and safeguards concerning senior appointments. Its provisions apply to the mandate and funding arrangements beginning in 2026, replacing the previous financing legislation.

SVT’s mandate runs from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2033. The framework applies across broadcast and digital services, while the separate terrestrial licence deals principally with transmission requirements.

On 22 September 2026 SVT announced that two programme areas would merge into Nyheter & Samhälle, covering news and current affairs, from 1 November 2026. Karin Ekman will lead the combined area. The changes also include a dedicated SVT Play team and greater emphasis on younger audiences.

Source of funding and budget

SVT is financed principally through an earmarked public service fee, introduced in 2019 to replace the television licence fee. For 2026 the charge is 1 per cent of taxable earned income, capped at SEK 1,184 per person annually, compared with SEK 1,249 in 2025. Capital income is excluded. The fee applies to eligible adults; companies do not pay it.

The revenue sits outside the general state budget. The Tax Agency collects it and transfers it to a dedicated public service account at the Swedish National Debt Office, administered by Kammarkollegiet, with its funds reserved for public-service broadcasting.

Fee income represented approximately 95 per cent of revenue in 2025. Supplementary income includes programme and rights sales, royalties, production-related services, sponsorship and ancillary activities. Commercial advertising is prohibited. Direct sponsorship is narrowly permitted for sports events and the Eurovision Song Contest final when SVT hosts it.

The funding increases for 2026 to 2033 were adopted. SVT’s ordinary allocation for 2026 is SEK 5,732.877 million, a 3 per cent increase over 2025, with annual increases of 2 per cent for 2027 to 2030 and 1 per cent for 2031 to 2033. The mandate specifies annual amounts, paid monthly from the public service account.

The Riksdag sets the funding framework for the whole mandate period and makes annual allocations within it. This provides a longer planning horizon without constituting a single payment for eight years.

Higher terrestrial transmission costs have prompted substantial savings. On 4 February 2026 SVT announced that it needed to reduce its annual cost base by SEK 355 million by the beginning of 2027. TV4’s departure from terrestrial broadcasting and a new Teracom agreement increased SVT’s transmission costs by SEK 192 million in 2026. Other pressures included digital investment and preparedness requirements. By June, SVT said the savings programme involved reductions affecting 141 positions.

Additional compensation remains under consideration. On 30 June 2026 the government consulted on four options for compensating SVT and Sveriges Radio for higher transmission costs in 2026 and 2027. Full compensation would provide SVT with SEK 383 million across the two years; the alternatives cover approximately 75, 50 or 25 per cent of the estimated increase. The consultation closes on 30 September 2026.

Editorial independence

Editorial independence is an explicit statutory requirement. Chapter 2 of the Public Service Act requires independence from the state and from economic, political and other interests, and requires impartiality and factual accuracy. Programme-related conditions imposed through the public-service mandate must be accepted by the broadcaster.

The foundation provides an institutional buffer, although government appointments to its board mean that the ownership arrangement is not wholly detached from political institutions.

The Review Board for Radio and Television, an independent decision-making body within the Swedish Agency for the Media, assesses compliance with applicable broadcasting and public-service requirements. Separately, the Media Ombudsman and Media Ethics Council provide a self-regulatory complaints mechanism concerning unjustified harm caused by publication.

AI and digital policy

SVT has a documented AI policy and an internal structure for overseeing its use. In June 2023 it established an AI council tasked with interpreting the policy, proposing revisions, advising staff on ethical and production questions, and supporting training and strategic decisions. State Media Monitor verified the policy’s existence but could not establish the complete wording of its current version.

Operational use is documented. SVT’s 2025 reporting describes AI-assisted investigative data analysis, generative video in drama, entertainment and children’s programming, and an internal language-model service, ChatSVT, intended to provide a secure working environment. It also reports expanded verification capacity to address manipulated and misleading material.

Classification rationale

SVT remains classified Independent Public (IP).

It is owned by a foundation designed to protect the broadcaster’s independence. Government and parliamentary parties participate in appointing that foundation’s board, but the foundation holds the shares and separates the broadcaster from direct government ownership.

It is financed predominantly through a dedicated public contribution. The income-based fee is legally earmarked and administered through a separate public service account outside the general state budget. Parliamentary involvement in setting the fee and allocations remains an important feature of the system.

Its editorial autonomy has statutory and institutional safeguards, including explicit independence requirements, a mandate applying across broadcast and digital services, and external regulatory and self-regulatory scrutiny.

September 2026