Yle investigates disruptions in regional news broadcasts across Finland

In recent days, Yle’s regional television news broadcasts have experienced disruptions, leaving viewers puzzled as some have watched news from the Uusimaa region instead of their local updates. Olli Sipilä, the head of broadcast technology and distribution at Yle, stated that the cause of these issues is currently under intense investigation. He apologized for the inconvenience caused.

This autumn, Yle revamped the technology used for regional news broadcasts, as it had become outdated. The introduction of this new technology has led to various disruptions. Viewers reported instances where the screen briefly went black at the beginning of a broadcast.

“This is a complex system that combines automation and human input,” Sipilä explained. Throughout this week, many viewers across the country saw the Yle Uutiset Uusimaa broadcast instead of their local regional news.

The reason for the prevalence of Uusimaa news is because, when a regional broadcast fails for any reason, it automatically switches to the Uusimaa broadcast. According to Sipilä, this has been standard practice since the inception of regional news broadcasting.

“Our top experts have been addressing the issues, and the regional news broadcast at 18:23 on Thursday evening proceeded as normal,” Sipilä noted, adding that the problems encountered earlier in the week have now been resolved.

For those looking for regional updates, Yle Uutiset from your area is also available on their streaming platform, Areena.