77 channels
Norway's television market is small but unusually well-served for its population. Public broadcaster NRK still anchors the landscape with two main linear channels and a strong on-demand archive, funded by a licence fee model that has shifted over the years. Alongside it sits TV 2, the country's first big commercial player, which built its reputation on news, sports rights and Saturday-night entertainment. A handful of smaller commercial and niche channels fill out the dial, giving Norwegian viewers a mix of general, series, entertainment and classic-film options. What sets Norway apart from its Nordic neighbours is the language question. Norwegians are famously comfortable with English, and imported drama and comedy usually air in their original language with Norwegian subtitles rather than dubbed. Dubbing is largely reserved for children's programming. That means primetime can feel bilingual in a way that, say, German or French television rarely does. You flip from a Norwegian-language current-affairs panel to an American or British series without missing a beat. News culture is public-service shaped. NRK's bulletins are measured and regional, with strong local opt-outs that matter in a country of long distances and small towns. TV 2's news tends to be faster-paced and more tabloid in tone. Sports rights are split between public and commercial broadcasters, and winter sports in particular draw the kind of mass audiences that football does elsewhere in Europe. Saturday nights still lean on entertainment formats, while Sunday evenings often go quiet and reflective. It's a compact market, but a distinctive one.