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September 28th, 2007, 06:10 PM
The Eurovision Song Contest format for 2008 will, as revealed by esctoday.com on July 31st, change to a two semi final system. At a meeting of the TV Committee of the European Broadcasting Union in Verona today, it was decided to approve the proposal of hosting two Semi-Finals for the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest.
The proposal was put together by the Reference Group of the contest. Only the Host Country, France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom are automatically qualified for the Final. All other participants will participate in one of two Semi-Finals.
Executive supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest, Svante Stockselius told eurovision.tv:
"We are convinced that the introduction of a second Semi-Final contributes to a more stable future for the Eurovision Song Contest...We carefully listened to the suggestions of Members and fans and we took notice of the critical remarks in the press. After evaluating several scenarios, it was decided to introduce a second Semi-Final already in 2008. This increases the fairness of the competition, opens doors to a more interesting final and production-wise, it is the most flexible solution," he underlined.
The most notable losers initially are Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Belarus, Greece, Armenia, Hungary and Moldova, who all lose their automatic place in the 2008 final. Although the rules of the 2007 event clearly stated that a top ten finish would not guarantee an automatic place in the 2008 final, it is likely that these countries will feel aggrieved.
The proposal was put together by the Reference Group of the contest. Only the Host Country, France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom are automatically qualified for the Final. All other participants will participate in one of two Semi-Finals.
Executive supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest, Svante Stockselius told eurovision.tv:
"We are convinced that the introduction of a second Semi-Final contributes to a more stable future for the Eurovision Song Contest...We carefully listened to the suggestions of Members and fans and we took notice of the critical remarks in the press. After evaluating several scenarios, it was decided to introduce a second Semi-Final already in 2008. This increases the fairness of the competition, opens doors to a more interesting final and production-wise, it is the most flexible solution," he underlined.
The most notable losers initially are Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Belarus, Greece, Armenia, Hungary and Moldova, who all lose their automatic place in the 2008 final. Although the rules of the 2007 event clearly stated that a top ten finish would not guarantee an automatic place in the 2008 final, it is likely that these countries will feel aggrieved.