CHANGE IN EUROVISION RULES

ArmRadio – Public Radio, Armenia
Oct 3 2007

At the 50th meeting of the TV Committee of the European Broadcasting
Union it was decided to approve the proposal of hosting two Semi-Finals
for the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest, Diana Mnatsakanyan, Head of the
External Relations Department of the Public Television of Armenia,
told Armenpress. According to her, next year the representative of
Armenia will participate in the Semi-Final.

"Previously, the top ten countries automatically qualified for the
Final. This time, only five countries will go directly to the Final,"
Diana Mnatsakanyan noted. These countries include France, Germany,
Spain, the United Kingdom and Serbia, the winner of Eurovision 2007.

"From now on the above-mentioned four countries will be permanent,
and it can be understood, since they cover the main expenses for the
organization of the Eurovision Song Contest," Diana Mnatsakanyan
said. According to her, henceforth all other participants will be
grouped into two Semi-Finals. 10 countries will be selected from
each Semi-Final, nine of which will elected by viewers through phone
calls and SMS messages. The jury will choose the tenth country. All
in all, 25 countries will be represented in the Final. The two
Semi-Finals will be aired live on the same day and at the same hour,
but Armenian viewers will watch the one where the representative of
Armenia performs.

Like the previous year, the representative of Armenia will be selected
by TV viewers during a preliminary competition. "I should note that
our composers are very passive, while the Armenian side must respond
in December whether it is going to participate in the Contest or not,"
Diana Mnatsakanyan said.

According to a preliminary agreement, the Semi-Finals are set for
May 22nd. The Final will take place on May 24.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress