What Õhtuleht Kirjastus does

AS Õhtuleht Kirjastus is an Estonian media publishing company headquartered in Tallinn (Narva mnt 13) that operates a multi-format portfolio of more than 15 publications, including Estonia's largest-circulation daily newspaper (Õhtuleht, also the largest in the Baltic States), women's lifestyle magazines (Naisteleht, Tiiu, Naisteleht 55+), a TV guide (Teleleht), an esoteric title (Müstika), and a family of crossword and puzzle magazines (Ristik, Megaristik, Miniristik, Meistriristik, Ripsik, Sudoku, and themed crossword titles). The portfolio is served through paper and digital subscriptions, single-copy sales, web portals (ohtuleht.ee, toidutare.ee, naisteleht.ee, ristik.ee), and an owned e-commerce storefront at pood.ohtuleht.ee, with approximately 200 journalists and specialists producing over 2,000 pages of content monthly and reaching 400,000+ monthly web visitors.

The underlying technology stack is a conventional digital publishing platform: subscription management with standing orders and auto-renewal, multiple payment rails (Zlick mobile payments, EveryPay cards, and Estonian bank integrations with Coop Pank, LHV, Luminor, SEB, and Swedbank), audience analytics via Google Analytics, Gemius, Chartbeat, and JWPlayer, advertising systems supporting CPM-based formats across web and mobile, marketing automation via Piano and SendGrid, push notifications through OneSignal, and CDN/security via Cloudflare. The company also operates a subscription center service for other publishers, including order reception, subscriber database administration, and call center operations.

Revenue is generated through three primary streams: recurring subscriptions across print and digital products (priced from €2.69/month for puzzle titles to €30.90/month for the flagship Õhtuleht), advertising sales across both print and digital inventory (CPM-based digital advertising and bundled social-media packages), and transactional micropayments via Zlick for individual article purchases. B2C distribution is direct-to-consumer through owned channels; B2B advertisers are served by a dedicated sales team. The company has been a 100%-owned subsidiary of Ekspress Grupp (Tallinn Stock Exchange-listed Baltic media group) since the Estonian Competition Authority's April 2, 2026 approval of Ekspress Grupp's acquisition of the remaining 50% stake from AVH Grupp, and maintains editorial independence as an independent media outlet.

Name

Õhtuleht Kirjastus

Legal name

AS Õhtuleht Kirjastus

Website

https://ohtulehtkirjastus.ee

Company type

Private

Founded year

1944

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

AS Õhtuleht Kirjastus is a Tallinn-based Estonian media publisher operating 15+ publications, including Estonia's largest-circulation daily newspaper, women's, TV, and puzzle magazines, plus web portals, serving Estonian consumers via subscriptions and advertisers via cross-platform ad sales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Newspaper Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110), Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Community, Ethnic & Multilingual News Publishers (MPAJADAG)

Keywords

• Newspaper publishing
• Magazine publishing
• Digital media
• Crossword puzzles
• Media advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Tallinn

HQ country

Estonia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Print and Digital Subscriptions: Recurring subscription revenue from newspapers, magazines, and digital products. Subscription models include monthly billing via standing orders, credit card, and mobile payments. Auto-renewal functionality for continuous revenue.
2. Advertising Revenue: Advertising sales across print publications (newspapers, magazines) and digital platforms (web portals, mobile). CPM-based pricing for digital with various ad formats. Includes special solutions and custom advertising projects.
3. Article Purchases: Single article purchases via mobile payment (Zlick platform) allowing readers to buy individual articles for reading across devices
4. Loyalty Program: Quarterly prize drawings valued at 1000 EUR total, incentivizing subscriptions and customer retention

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Õhtuleht Kirjastus is an Estonian media publishing company that produces and distributes newspapers, magazines, web portals, and crossword puzzle publications. Its portfolio includes Õhtuleht (Estonia's largest-circulation daily newspaper), women's and lifestyle magazines (Naisteleht, Tiiu), TV guide (Teleleht), and a family of crossword/puzzle magazines (Ristik). Content is delivered via print subscriptions, digital subscriptions, web portals (ohtuleht.ee, toidutare.ee), and an e-commerce store, serving both consumer readers and business advertisers.

Product overview

Õhtuleht Kirjastus is a media publishing company operating a multi-format portfolio of over 15 publications, primarily serving the Estonian market. The portfolio is organized around four main product lines: (1) Newspapers – anchored by Õhtuleht, Estonia's largest-circulation daily newspaper (also the largest in the Baltics) with accompanying online news portal ohtuleht.ee; (2) Magazines – including Naisteleht (women's weekly), Tiiu (monthly lifestyle), Teleleht (TV/radio guide), and Müstika (esoteric); (3) Crossword/Puzzle magazines – a family of puzzle publications including Ristik (Estonia's #1 crossword magazine), Megaristik, Miniristik, Meistriristik, Ripsik (children's), Sudoku, and various themed crossword titles (Tiiu Ristsõnad, Meluristik, Naistelehe Ristsõnad, Õhtulehe Ristsõnad); and (4) Web Portals – including Toidutare.ee (recipe portal with 20,000+ recipes) and ohtuleht.ee. Products are distributed via paper subscription, digital subscription, single-copy sales, and the company's e-commerce platform (pood.ohtuleht.ee). The company also offers subscription management services to other publishers and operates a quarterly loyalty program for subscribers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Õhtuleht: Estonia's largest-circulation daily newspaper, also the largest by circulation in the Baltics, published as a tabloid format.
• Naisteleht
• Naisteleht 55+
• Teleleht
• Tiiu
• Ristik
• Miniristik
• Meistriristik
• Megaristik
• Ripsik
• Õhtulehe Ristsõnad
• Tiiu Ristsõnad
• Meluristik
• Naistelehe Ristsõnad
• Sudoku (RISTIK)
• Müstika
• Toidutare

Products and services

• Õhtuleht Estonia's largest-circulation daily newspaper, published in tabloid format since 1944 and also the largest circulation newspaper in the Baltic States. Includes an associated online news portal at ohtuleht.ee delivering news, lifestyle, and entertainment content to Estonian readers.
• Naisteleht Weekly women's magazine published every Wednesday covering health, fashion, beauty, lifestyle, and inspiring personal stories, with an associated portal at naisteleht.ee for Estonian women readers.
• Naisteleht 55+ Quarterly magazine (March, June, September, December) for active people aged 55+ offering practical lifestyle and entertainment content tailored to mature Estonian readers.
• Tiiu Monthly magazine combining four sub-publications — Tiiu (lifestyle), Tervisetark (health), Meelejahutaja (puzzles), and Siluett (fashion/beauty/crafts) — into over 100 pages per issue for Estonian readers.
• Teleleht Weekly TV and radio guide magazine featuring program schedules for 23 channels plus celebrity articles, health tips, recipes, children's section, puzzles, and horoscopes for Estonian TV viewers.
• Müstika Monthly magazine focused on paranormal topics, alternative perspectives, folk wisdom, and spiritual self-discovery for Estonian readers interested in exploring beyond conventional reality.
• Ristik Estonia's most popular A4-format crossword magazine published monthly, featuring approximately 30 crosswords and puzzles per issue including Scandinavian-style crosswords, cryptograms, and sudoku. Annual prize pool of €5,300.
• Megaristik Quarterly crossword magazine (February, May, August, November) with 52 pages containing over 40 crosswords; the largest Ristik publication, suitable as a gift for puzzle enthusiasts.
• Miniristik Pocket-sized monthly crossword magazine featuring various puzzle types suitable for both beginners and experienced solvers, published around the 10th of each month.
• Meistriristik Monthly crossword magazine for experienced and demanding puzzle solvers, featuring approximately 30 crosswords per issue, published around the 20th of each month.
• Ripsik Monthly puzzle magazine for children and school students featuring crosswords, picture puzzles, riddles, and memory games, with over 20 crosswords per issue.
• Sudoku (RISTIK) Quarterly pocket-format puzzle magazine featuring over 120 sudoku puzzles in three difficulty levels, published seasonally (winter, spring, summer, autumn).
• Õhtulehe Ristsõnad Monthly crossword magazine featuring diverse crossword types and topics including celebrities, holidays, family life, and pets, with approximately 30 crosswords per issue.
• Tiiu Ristsõnad Monthly crossword magazine produced in collaboration with Tiiu magazine, featuring approximately 30 crosswords per issue with large squares and font for easy solving. Annual prize pool of €5,300.
• Meluristik Monthly A4-format crossword puzzle magazine combining entertainment crosswords about celebrities, TV shows, and nostalgia with cryptograms, mazes, and sudoku.
• Naistelehe Ristsõnad Monthly crossword magazine with themes including cooking, gardening, fashion, esoteric topics, and nature, featuring Scandinavian crosswords and memory games. Annual prize pool of €5,300.
• Toidutare Estonia's largest recipe website (toidutare.ee), featuring over 20,000 recipes with professional food photography, plus cooking and beverage articles, videos, and conversion tables.
• Tellimiskeskuse teenus (Subscription Management Service) Subscription management and customer database administration service with call-center support, offered to publishers of periodic publications. The service covers order reception, subscriber database management, and customer service operations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Estonia's and Baltic States' largest circulation daily newspaper
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration30 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Ekspress GruppcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 July 2025Ekspress Grupp (AS Ekspress Grupp), the leading Baltic media group, acquired the remaining 50% stake in Õhtuleht Kirjastus from AVH Grupp, becoming the sole owner. The transaction was approved by the Estonian Competition Authority on April 2, 2026. Õhtuleht maintains editorial independence as an independent media publication under this ownership.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Delfi Meedia: Delfi Meedia is Estonia's leading digital news portal, also owned by Ekspress Grupp, with 237,000+ Baltic digital subscriptions. It directly competes with Õhtuleht.ee for Estonian news readers, advertisers, and digital subscription share.
• Postimees Group: Postimees Group (Eesti Meedia) is Estonia's other major newspaper publisher, publishing Postimees, the principal direct competitor to Õhtuleht in the Estonian daily newspaper market, and operates a similar portfolio of print and digital news and lifestyle titles.
• Äripäev: Äripäev is a long-standing Estonian daily business newspaper and B2B information publisher operating in the same Estonian-language news market, with overlapping advertising clients and a comparable subscription-based print and digital model.

Broad incumbents

• Egmont Publishing: Egmont is a major Nordic media and entertainment group operating a significant portfolio of magazines and digital content across Scandinavia, directly comparable in its multi-title magazine publishing and subscription monetization model.
• Schibsted: Schibsted is a large Nordic media group historically tied to Estonia's Postimees and a broad portfolio of subscription-based news brands across the Nordics and Baltics, making it a comparable incumbent in adjacent Estonian and Nordic subscription media.
• Sanoma: Sanoma is a leading Nordic media and learning company publishing major newspapers, magazines, and digital content in Finland and across the Nordics, comparable in its multi-format subscription and advertising business model.
• Ekspress Grupp: Ekspress Grupp is the leading Baltic media group and the sole owner of Õhtuleht Kirjastus since April 2026, operating a wider portfolio of news, classifieds, and digital media brands across Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
• Burda Media: Burda is a major international magazine publisher with a wide portfolio of lifestyle, fashion, and consumer titles, broadly comparable to Õhtuleht Kirjastus's magazine and women's lifestyle publications (e.g., Naisteleht) in business model and audience focus.
• Bonnier: Bonnier is a major Nordic family-owned media group spanning newspapers, magazines, and digital media across the Nordics and Baltics, with a comparable diversified publishing portfolio and a media-prize tradition (Bonnier Prize) relevant to Õhtuleht's editorial recognition.
• Aller Media: Aller Media is a leading Nordic magazine publisher with operations across Scandinavia and the Baltics, directly comparable as a publisher of weekly and monthly subscription magazines (women's lifestyle, TV guides, puzzles) similar to Naisteleht, Teleleht, and Ristik.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights9 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/OhtulehtReis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sl-htuleht-as

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Õhtuleht Kirjastus