Salatut elämät is a Finnish television series that premiered on MTV3 on 25 January 1999. It was the first, and so far only, Finnish daily soap opera. During the series' 14-year run, over 2,500 episodes have been aired. On 17 August 2009, it was announced that Salatut elämät will be on the air until the spring 2015 making the series the second longest-lasting drama series of all time in Finland, only behind Yle TV1's Kotikatu. The series' storylines follow the daily lives of several families who live in the same apartment block in Helsinki. The series primarily centres around the residents of Pihlajakatu and its neighbouring areas. Only three of the original twenty characters Seppo, Ismo and Kalle, still remain in the series, and most of the series' current characters have made their debuts in 2008 or later. MTV3 also airs reruns of the series every weekend. In the summer, the channel airs reruns of the series; in the summer of 2011, episodes from the season 2006–2007 and 2007–2008 were aired. Four web spin-off series have been made; Romeo & Rafael Desperados in 2008, Lillukanvarsia in 2010–2011, Tuuliranta in 2011–2012 and "Young man cash man" in 2013..