Press support is a Norwegian

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 state subsidy

Subsidy

A subsidy is an assistance paid to a business or economic sector. Most subsidies are made by the government to producers or distributors in an industry to prevent the decline of that industry or an increase in the prices of its products or simply to encourage it to hire more labor A subsidy (also...

 available for newspaper

Newspaper

A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...

s. The subsidy is twofold; the first part is a direct subsidy of the second- largest, by circulation, newspapers in each city. The other subsidy is that newspaper are subject to no sales tax

Sales tax

A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....

 (as are book

Book

A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...

s).

Direct support

The direct subsidy is managed by the Norwegian Media Authority, and was NOK

Norwegian krone

The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...

 303 million in 2006, paid to 138 newspapers. It was introduced in 1965, because of the fear of a massive newspaper death like Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 and Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

 had seen, mainly the second largest newspapers in each city. Also, at the time, most newspapers were not political neutral, with many papers being controlled by either conservative forces, the labour movement

Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions

The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions is a national trade union center, decidedly the largest and probably the most influential umbrella organization of labour unions in Norway. The 21 national unions affiliated to the LO have more than 850,000 members of a Norwegian population of 4.8 million...

 or political parties. Support is given to all newspapers that are do not have the largest circulation in the city of publishing. There are limitations on the newspapers who can receive support, including that the support will cease if they pay a dividend

Dividend

Dividends are payments made by a corporation to its shareholder members. It is the portion of corporate profits paid out to stockholders. When a corporation earns a profit or surplus, that money can be put to two uses: it can either be re-invested in the business , or it can be distributed to...

 to their owners. Other support is given to media research

Media studies

Media studies is an academic discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history and effects of various media; in particular, the 'mass media'. Media studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly from its core disciplines of mass...

, follow-up studies, sami newspapers

Sami people

The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...

, immigrant publications and distribution support for Finnmark

Finnmark

or Finnmárku is a county in the extreme northeast of Norway. By land it borders Troms county to the west, Finland to the south and Russia to the east, and by water, the Norwegian Sea to the northwest, and the Barents Sea to the north and northeast.The county was formerly known as Finmarkens...

.

The press support has been partially successful, with a number of second-largest newspapers surviving, like Bergensavisen

Bergensavisen

Bergensavisen , usually shortened to BA, is the second largest newspaper in Bergen, Norway. It is published in tabloid format. The newspaper webpage ba.no is Bergen's largest local newspaper webpage....

(Bergen), Rogalands Avis

Rogalands Avis

Rogalands Avis is a local newspaper published in Stavanger, Norway. It covers Stavanger and the rest of southern Rogaland. It was established in 1899....

(Stavanger) and Dagsavisen

Dagsavisen

Dagsavisen is a daily newspaper published in Oslo, Norway. The former party organ of the Norwegian Labour Party, the ties loosened over time from 1975 to 1999, and it is now fully independent...

(Oslo). Other secondary newspapers have been closed, like Trondheims-Pressen

Trondheims-Pressen

Trondheims-Pressen was a cooperative newspaper published in Trondheim, Norway from May 8 to May 12, 1945 by Arbeider-Avisen, Nidaros and Adresseavisen....

. The largest receivers are often national newspapers, targeting special (often political) sectors, like Klassekampen

Klassekampen

Klassekampen is a Norwegian daily newspaper, which styles itself as "the daily left-wing newspaper".Klassekampen was founded in 1969 with a Marxist-Leninist-Maoist platform. Until recently, it was owned by The Workers' Communist Party...

(Socialist), Nationen

Nationen

Nationen is a Norwegian daily newspaper, founded in 1918. It has a circulation of approximately 14,000 and primarily targets farmers and the agriarian sector, with focus on district politics, farming, commentaries and features. It is based in Oslo, with offices in Trondheim and Fagernes, and edited...

(Agrarian) and Vårt Land

Vårt Land (Norwegian newspaper)

Vårt Land is a daily newspaper published in Oslo. It has a nationwide target audience. Its average daily circulation in 2007 was 27.146, it was Norway's 23rd largest newspaper...

(Christian). Most of the large, business and tabloid newspapers, like Dagbladet

Dagbladet

Dagbladet is Norway's second largest tabloid newspaper, and the third largest newspaper overall with a circulation of 105,255 copies in 2009, 18,128 papers less than in 2008. The editor in chief is Lars Helle....

 or Dagens Næringsliv

Dagens Næringsliv

Dagens Næringsliv, commonly known as DN, is a Norwegian tabloid specializing in business reporting with a claimed daily circulation of 82,775 copies in 2008, making it the 8th largest newspaper in Norway. The editor in chief is Amund Djuve. Its name is Norwegian for "Today's Business".Originally...

, do not receive support, since they pay dividend to their owners.

Papers that receive the most support

×	Paper	2005	2003
1	Dagsavisen Dagsavisen Dagsavisen is a daily newspaper published in Oslo, Norway. The former party organ of the Norwegian Labour Party, the ties loosened over time from 1975 to 1999, and it is now fully independent...	40 992 576	39 851 052
2	Bergensavisen Bergensavisen Bergensavisen , usually shortened to BA, is the second largest newspaper in Bergen, Norway. It is published in tabloid format. The newspaper webpage ba.no is Bergen's largest local newspaper webpage....	32 256 115	27 596 098
3	Vårt Land Vårt Land (Norwegian newspaper) Vårt Land is a daily newspaper published in Oslo. It has a nationwide target audience. Its average daily circulation in 2007 was 27.146, it was Norway's 23rd largest newspaper...	31 683 024	31 238 520
4	Nationen Nationen Nationen is a Norwegian daily newspaper, founded in 1918. It has a circulation of approximately 14,000 and primarily targets farmers and the agriarian sector, with focus on district politics, farming, commentaries and features. It is based in Oslo, with offices in Trondheim and Fagernes, and edited...	23 094 731	23 122 393
5	Klassekampen Klassekampen Klassekampen is a Norwegian daily newspaper, which styles itself as "the daily left-wing newspaper".Klassekampen was founded in 1969 with a Marxist-Leninist-Maoist platform. Until recently, it was owned by The Workers' Communist Party...	14 513 041	13 068 764
6	Rogalands Avis Rogalands Avis Rogalands Avis is a local newspaper published in Stavanger, Norway. It covers Stavanger and the rest of southern Rogaland. It was established in 1899....	13 280 816	13 096 528

Indirect support

By far the greatest level of support to newspapers arises out of their exemption from sales tax and exceeds NOK 1 billion. This exemption was instituted to foster a variety of perspectives from newspapers; to stimulate public debate and consciousness, democracy

Democracy

Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...

, freedom of speech

Freedom of speech

Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...

 and to enable the media to act as society's watch-dog.

Indirect press support

×	Paper	Direct support	Indirect support	Sum
1	VG Verdens Gang Verdens Gang , generally known under the abbreviation VG, is a Norwegian tabloid newspaper...	0	215 000 000	215 000 000
2	Aftenposten Aftenposten Aftenposten is Norway's largest newspaper. It retook this position in 2010, taking it from the tabloid Verdens Gang which had been the largest newspaper for several decades. It is based in Oslo. The morning edition, which is distributed across all of Norway, had a circulation of 250,179 in 2007...	0	126 000 000	126 000 000
3	Dagbladet Dagbladet Dagbladet is Norway's second largest tabloid newspaper, and the third largest newspaper overall with a circulation of 105,255 copies in 2009, 18,128 papers less than in 2008. The editor in chief is Lars Helle....	0	121 000 000	121 000 000
4	Dagens Næringsliv Dagens Næringsliv Dagens Næringsliv, commonly known as DN, is a Norwegian tabloid specializing in business reporting with a claimed daily circulation of 82,775 copies in 2008, making it the 8th largest newspaper in Norway. The editor in chief is Amund Djuve. Its name is Norwegian for "Today's Business".Originally...	0	43 000 000	43 000 000
5	Dagsavisen Dagsavisen Dagsavisen is a daily newspaper published in Oslo, Norway. The former party organ of the Norwegian Labour Party, the ties loosened over time from 1975 to 1999, and it is now fully independent...	29 000 000	14 000 000	43 000 000
6	Bergens Tidende Bergens Tidende Bergens Tidende is Norway's fourth largest newspaper and largest newspaper outside Oslo, with a circulation of about 87,000 copies . Founded in 1868, it is a Norwegian-language newspaper published daily in Bergen. It reaches approximately 260,000 readers every day , mainly in the counties of...	0	42 000 000	42 000 000
7	Adresseavisen Adresseavisen Adresseavisen is a regional newspaper published daily, except Sundays, in Trondheim, Norway. It is an independent, conservative newspaper with a daily circulation of approximately 85,000. It is also informally known as Adressa. The newspaper covers the areas of Trøndelag and Nordmøre.Adresseavisen...	0	37 000 000	37 000 000
8	Bergensavisen Bergensavisen Bergensavisen , usually shortened to BA, is the second largest newspaper in Bergen, Norway. It is published in tabloid format. The newspaper webpage ba.no is Bergen's largest local newspaper webpage....	20 000 000	14 000 000	34 000 000
9	Vårt Land Vårt Land (Norwegian newspaper) Vårt Land is a daily newspaper published in Oslo. It has a nationwide target audience. Its average daily circulation in 2007 was 27.146, it was Norway's 23rd largest newspaper...	18 000 000	12 000 000	30 000 000
10	Stavanger Aftenblad Stavanger Aftenblad Stavanger Aftenblad or simply Aftenbladet is a daily newspaper in Stavanger, Norway. It was founded in 1893 by the priest Lars Oftedal, and was for a long period a publication for the Liberal Party. It had a circulation of 68,186 copies in 2005...	0	29 000 000	29 000 000
	Sum	67 000 000	653 000 000	720 000 000