The program seeks to discover the best unsigned singer in Finland through a series of nationwide auditions, and the outcomes of the later stages of the competition are determined by public phone voting.
The four original judges were music executives Jone Nikula and Asko Kallonen, and songwriter-producers Hannu Korkeamäki and Nanna Mikkonen.
The current judging panel consists of Nikula, singer Lauri Ylönen, drummer Jussi 69 and rapper Sini Sabotage.
In the seven seasons to date, its winners have been Hanna Pakarinen, Ilkka Jääskeläinen, Ari Koivunen, Koop Arponen, Martti Saarinen and Diandra Flores and Mitra Kaislaranta.
Following the completion of its fourth season, Idols was placed on a hiatus and replaced in 2010 by the X Factor, a new reality singing competition originating from the United Kingdom's version, created by music executive Simon Cowell.
Former forklift truck driver Hanna Pakarinen was declared the first Finnish Idol with 60% of the public votes cast, winning 30,000 euros and a recording contract with Sony BMG.
Her second album Stronger was released in September 2005 and it too peaked at number two, however it did not manage to achieve the same commercial success of her debut, though it did earn gold status, selling almost 17,000 copies.
In January 2009 her fourth studio album Love in a Million Shades was released and charted at number 7, her lowest position to date.
Runner-up Jani Wickholm signed a recording contract with the RCA division of Sony BMG and his debut album Kaikki muuttuu was released in September 2004.
His third and fourth albums (Yhden lauseen mies and Ranta-ahon valot) were released in January 2007 and April 2008 respectively, and were met with decreasing sales figures.
Wickholm released his first greatest hits compilation, Kirkkaimmat Tähdet in May 2010, but the album failed to achieve commercial success and as a result, missed the Finnish Top 50.
Antti Tuisku, his self-titled sophomore effort also hit the top spot when released a year later in May 2005, and was certified platinum after selling over 37,000 copies.
Although it initially peaked at number 6 for two weeks, the album quickly fell down and left the chart after selling 13,000 copies and did not achieve gold status.
Sixth place finisher Anniina Karjalainen independently released her first album Traces of Me in 2006 but it did not receive significant success, failing to chart and selling only 3,000 copies.
Ellen Jokikunnas and Heikki Paasonen returned to host, but the judging panel saw a significant change, with only Jone Nikula staying on the show.
However, Jääskeläinen failed to achieve significant critical or commercial success, and his debut album spent only three weeks inside the top five.
Katri Ylander, her self-titled debut album was a huge critical success and when released in June 2006, spent three weeks at its peak of number 3.
Ylander's highly anticipated third studio album Valvojat was released on 2 September 2009 and debuted at number 6, seven places higher than her sophomore effort.
Sixth place finisher Roni Tran received a recording contract with Sony BMG and released his debut album Since 1987 in mid-2006.
The grand finale was held at Helsinki Ice Hall on 5 April 2007, and heavy-metal contestant Ari Koivunen was declared winner with 57% of the vote.
Winner Ari Koivunen signed to Sony BMG and his coronation song "On the Top of the World" hit number 1.
Koivunen's second album Becoming came in June 2008 and it too entered the chart at number 1; however it held the spot for only a single week and its success did not come near that of its predecessor, selling 17,000 units.
Third-place finisher Kristiina Brask was signed to the Helsinki Music Company label and her debut album Silmät sydämeeni was released in November 2007.
Fourth-place finisher Kristian Meurman signed a contract with RCA Records and his debut album Ensiaskeleet was released in June 2007.
It held the top spot for a total of twelve weeks and received huge critical acclaim from the Finnish music industry.
Third place finisher Pete Parkkonen received a recording contract from Sony BMG and was the first season 4 contestant to release an album.
Fourth place finisher Kalle Löfström signed a deal with Edel Records and released his debut album Born in 84 on 10 June 2009.
Whilst season 4 judges Jone Nikula and Nina Tapio both returned to the panel, Patric Sarin did not and was replaced by music executive Sami Pitkämö.
For the first time in the show's history, guest judges appeared during the regional audition, including Katri Helena and season 1 Idols alumni Antti Tuisku.
Laura Voutilainen and Tommi Liimatainen both left the series after only one season and will be replaced by singer Lauri Ylönen, rapper Sini Sabotage and drummer Jussi 69.