Over 400,000 views collected – the concrete has reached the desired level of dryness – the most talked-about live broadcast of the year will be closed on Friday

Published: 23.4.2025

In April, the nationwide slow-TV phenomenon Betonilive reached its peak on the first Easter day, when Finland's perhaps most famous concrete pour, which received over 400,000 views, reached the desired dryness level around eight in the morning. Due to the great popularity achieved by the live broadcast, the public still has the opportunity to see the dry concrete until Friday at 12 o'clock.

The concrete drying process, which started on April 3, was initially estimated to take about a month, but the warm days of April accelerated the process.

“All good things come to an end, and the same applies to the drying of concrete. We thank everyone who lived this exciting journey with us and are sincerely happy about the wave of positivity that Betonilive awakened in Finns. This exceeded all our expectations. We have been asked a lot for a second season, and we will seriously consider this,” says Tuomas Kolkka, VP IoT at Digita.

Betonilive wanted to illustrate how modern IoT technology enables the monitoring of the moisture of structures. In Betonilive, viewers received real-time information for several weeks about how dry the concrete slab was at any given time. At the same time, the screen displayed educational information about the properties of concrete.

Betonilive also includes Mitta Oy and its Wiiste measurement systems offered to the construction industry. Mitta has been responsible for casting the concrete element and installing the sensors that measure dryness.

“Ensuring sufficient drying of concrete is crucial in the construction industry for preventing indoor air and mold problems. If the concrete remains too wet, there is a risk of moisture accumulating on surfaces like the adhesive layers of plastic carpets, which can lead to issues. Good and continuous moisture monitoring also helps with scheduling and anticipating the next construction phases”, says Mitta’s Toni Luopajärvi.

“Despite the dry subject, this has been one of the most enjoyable collaboration projects between Mitta and Digita. Although some might have perceived this program as slow-paced, in reality, Betonilive was a real rocket in terms of drying speed and offered several exciting twists. With such a drying curve, there would no longer be a need to worry about coating decisions or moisture problems brewing under the surface”, continues Luopajärvi

Betonilive will be visible until Friday, April 25 at 12 o’clock online at Digita.fi/betonilive and on antenna TV channel 38. To get Betonilive visible on TV, antenna TV households need to search for channels again. Most receivers search for channels automatically. Some older receivers may require a factory reset before channel search. Instructions for tuning channels can be found in the device’s user manual and on the digita.fi website.

Digita/Communications