The web community Oma Kaupunki offers a new way of being hyperlocal, explained Reeta Merilainen, Editor-in-Chief of Helsingin Sanomat, Finland, at the fourth session of the15th World Editors Forum:

Oma Kaupunki - My Own City - was launched last august. It is a local community and search engine based on information rather than interaction. It offers local information from municipalities and companies. Users are also able to rate companies, services, restaurants etc. You can reserve a table or link info about it to a friend. Oma Kaupunki also offers local news produced by journalists.

Merilainen believes there is huge potential in readers; they have a wealth of information. But Oma Kaupunkis problem is how to get more interaction and still maintain credibility. According to Merilainen it's been a lot of hard work. They have to "clean" and structure all the information and data, but she is very happy with the result. Reeta Merilainen claims they don't make a lot of money on Oma Kaupunki, but the future still looks bright.

So has it been worth all that hard work? Yes, says Reeta Merilainen. Oma Kaupunki is something that no one else can offer in the Helsinki region. It's a good way to create communities even by traditional media.

Oma Kaupunki has further development ahead including:
Neighbourhood groups
Votes on articles  
Hobby groups
Today's events
Going mobile
Expansion of database

Oma Kaupunki is also going from local to global, in the figurative sense. The hyperlocal project My Own World is under construction and will use the same platform as Oma Kaupunki. Merilainen thinks being hyperlocal is not only about geography but also about mental proximity.There will be no Ivory Towers but close encounters with readers both virtually and physically.

Oma Kaupunki is the brainchild of Finish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat. It is the paper in Finland with 420 000 copies in circulation and 985 000 readers. 950 000 people consult the paper's website. Oma Kaupunki has been a large success in Finland with 60 000 unique visitors every week. The target is to get 100 000 unique visitors by the end of the year, a target Reeta Merilainen think will be met.