Sanoma has entered into a strategic cooperation partnership with Kaakon Viestintä. The mobile platforms for digital services used in Helsingin Sanomat will be available to the papers published by Kaakon Viestintä: Etelä-Saimaa, Kouvolan Sanomat, Kymen Sanomat, Länsi-Savo and Itä-Savo. “The application platforms we have developed and the unique user experience they provide has helped transfer the exceptionally strong reader relationship of Helsingin Sanomat to digital services as well. Our readers are not only keen on returning to the services, but also willing to pay for them. Now these technologies are also available to our business partners,” says Petteri Putkiranta, Business Director of Helsingin Sanomat.According to the Reuters Institute, 14 per cent of the population of Finland – a larger proportion than anywhere else – paid for online news during 2014. More than half of the subscribers of Helsingin Sanomat have already started using the paper’s digital services, and HS applications reach more than 150,000 readers weekly.“The agreement gives us access to a technology solution that helps us build better digital services for our mobile readers. In collaboration with Helsingin Sanomat, we will implement a basic technology that we can use to offer our readers high-quality local journalism in the best possible package. We believe our digital subscription sales will speed up significantly,” says Juhana Tikka, Business Director in charge of consumer relationships and digital business of Kaakon Viestintä.Etelä-Saimaa, Kouvolan Sanomat, Kymen Sanomat, Länsi-Savo and Itä-Savo have a total of more than 100,000 subscribing customers.In addition to Finnish publishers, Sanoma also provides its application platforms to international publishers.“There is international competition for consumers’ time and money in digital services. In order for digital services of Finnish subscription newspapers to do well in this competition, we should cooperate to develop digital products with superior usability that stand international comparison,” says Masa Peura, Sanoma Media Finland’s Director in charge of strategy and digital development.Read more: http://platform.sanoma.comFor more information, please contact:Hanna Johde, Communications Director, Sanoma Media Finland, tel. +358 40 673 8977Juhana Tikka, Business Director, Kaakon Viestintä, tel. +358 44 758 2321 Sanoma Media Finland is the most multichannel media company in Finland, well-known for its leading brands. We provide information, experiences and entertainment through magazines, newspapers, TV, radio, the Internet and mobile channels, reaching nearly all Finns every day. Sanoma Media Finland is part of Sanoma, a European forerunner in consumer media and learning.