Television was introduced in Western Europe in the early 1950s but came late to most Nordic countries. Denmark started regular broadcasts in 1954, Sweden in 1956, Finland in 1957, while Norway did not begin until 1960. Sweden, Finland and Norway have a large territory but a relatively small population, and one reason for the late introduction of television was related to the feasibility a transmitter system that would provide the majority of the population with access. Moreover, the government policy for example in Sweden concentrated efforts and financial resources on the construction of a network of stations rather than on increasing programming hours. Thus, a regional programme exchange was also seen as a solution to programme supply, particularly in categories with high productions costs, such as entertainment and drama. In this context, television was seen as having a potential to make a major contribution towards developing and fostering Nordic cooperation. Whilst the more extensive European exchange system Eurovision already existed since 1955, the programming it provided was focused on sports, news and cultural events, due to the technological constraints posed by live transmissions and language differences as it would not have been possible to provide subtitles. Mainly because of the late start of television in Norway, Nordvision began later than its wider European counterpart. Denmark and Sweden had begun cooperating in TV production as early as the summer of 1958, but the official start of the Nordic exchange did not take place until October 1959.
