Eurovision Song Contest 2008

Eurovision Song Contest 2008
"Confluence of Sound"
ESC Belgrade 2008.png
Semi-final 1 date 20 May 2008
Semi-final 2 date 22 May 2008
Final date 24 May 2008
Presenter(s) Jovana Janković
Željko Joksimović
Director Sven Stojanovic
Host broadcaster Serbia RTS
Venue Belgrade Arena
Belgrade, Serbia
Winning song  Russia
"Believe"
Voting system
People in each country can vote by tele-vote or SMS. Each country's 10 favourite songs are awarded 12, 10, then 8 through to 1 points based on the votes of the population of each country. All participating countries in the semi-finals and final will have the right to cast points in the final.[1]
Number of entries 43
Debuting countries  Azerbaijan
 San Marino[2]
Returning countries None
Withdrawing countries  Austria[3]
Nul points None
Opening act
Semi-final 1: Video killed a radio star performance
Semi-final 2: Serbia for beginners accompanied by Aleksandar Josipović as a Master of Ceremonies[5]
Final: Marija Šerifović performing "Molitva" (remix)
Interval act
Semi-final 1: Metropole Orkest, Slobodan Trkulja, Balkanopolis
Semi-final 2: National Theatre in Belgrade performance[4]
Final: Goran Bregović performance
Eurovision Song Contest
◄2007    Wiki Eurovision Heart (Infobox).svg    2009►

The Eurovision Song Contest 2008 was the 53rd edition of the Contest. It was hosted in Belgrade, Serbia after Marija Šerifović won the 2007 Contest in Helsinki, Finland. This year was the first contest to have two semi-finals which were held on 20 and 22 May, and the final held on 24 May 2008. The shows were hosted by Jovana Janković and Željko Joksimović at the Belgrade Arena which had a total capacity of more than 20,000 seats. The host broadcaster was RTS.[6].

After a total of 272 points. Dima Bilan representing Russia was declared the winner, with the song "Believe" written Jim Beanz and Bilan himself. So far this has been the only time Russia has won the contest.

2nd place went to Ukraine, 3rd to Greece, 4th to Armenia seeing their best result so far and 5th to Norway.

With only receiving 6 points from San Marino and 8 points from Ireland the United Kingdom had yet again finished in last place for the second time, their other being five years ago in 2003 were they received null points.

2008 also saw for the first time ever, Eurovision.tv streamed national finals live on ESCTV with broadcasters' permission.[7]

On 30 January 2008, Eurovision.tv revealed the theme of the Contest: "The Confluence of Sound",[8] which was inspired by Belgrade's location at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers.

Contents

Venue

The Belgrade Arena, the 2008 venue.

Serbia gained the right to host the Contest after Marija Šerifović won the 2007 Contest in Helsinki, Finland. Since Serbia was the winner of the preceding contest, the 2008 contest was subsequently held there. The Belgrade Arena was chosen as the venue for the contest[9], and is among the largest indoor arenas in Europe, with a total capacity of more than 20,000 seats. On 14 September 2007, the Mayor of Helsinki handed over the "Eurovision keys" to the Deputy of Belgrade. This ceremony is meant to be a tradition from the 2008 contest and onward, and the ring contains a key from every city that has ever hosted the competition.[10]

Due to problems and riots in Belgrade following the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo on 17 February 2008, the EBU held a phone conference to decide if the contest should be moved to a different country. Ukraine was considered an option since they came second in Eurovision Song Contest 2007. YLE were another option, as they hosted the previous year's competition in Helsinki, Finland.[11] Greece's Ellinikí Radiofonía Tileórasi (ERT) also offered the EBU to host the contest in Athens, Greece again.[12] It was later decided that the contest would stay in Belgrade, with the EBU giving support. RTS would gain a guarantee of safety and security from the government of Serbia for all visitors and participants of the contest.[13] The delegations of Albania, Croatia and Israel had special security.[14]

Visual design

Presenters Željko Joksimović and Jovana Janković during the first semi-final

RTS ran a competition that led to the creation of the 2008 Contest's branding, logo and the stage.[15] The theme of the Contest was based around the "confluence of sound". This was symbolic as Belgrade lies on the confluence of two European rivers, the Sava and Danube. The logo chosen, a treble clef, formed the graphical basis of the design created by Boris Miljković.[16]

The postcards in the first and second semi-final were based around the creation of the flag of the nation that was to perform next. Each post card had a short story related to it regarding Belgrade and its people. During each postcard a short letter written by the musician of the upcoming performing country was displayed. All were in the national language of the artist’s country, with the exception of the Serbian postcard, which consisted of "Welcome to Belgrade" and "Welcome to Serbia" in various languages, and the Belgian postcard, which was written in the same made-up language as their entry. The postcards were brought to an end by a stamp with this year's Eurovision logo.

A "postcard" introducing Sweden.

According to RTS the stage represented native identities, history and modern themes, symbols and universally recognised messages. The confluence-themed stage also contained a large number of television and LCD display screens. The stage had settings for all new electronic possibilities including some movable parts of the stage.[17] It was designed by Chicago-based David Cushing.

The first semi-final was created around a city theme. The contest opened with a panorama of the city of Belgrade forming in the stage's background with two waves sliding down the stage to meet in the centre - at the confluence, the overall theme of the contest.

The second semi-final was based around the theme of water, which was enhanced by the look of the stage during the interval act where the water formed the main colours of the stage.

The final was based on the theme of the confluence. Construction of the stage lasted several days and was carried out by various teams from across Europe. Pyrotechnics were heavily used for the entries from Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Germany, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Switzerland. The stage received positive feedback from the media and fans describing it as "one of the best looking stages in the history of the competition".

Format

     Participating countries      Countries that did not qualify for the final      Countries that have participated in the past but did not in 2009
     Countries in the first semi-final      Countries in the second semi-final      Countries voting in the first semi-final      Countries voting in the second semi-final

At a press conference in Helsinki in May 2007, Svante Stockselius, executive supervisor of the Contest for the EBU, announced that the competition's format may be expanded to two semi-finals in 2008 or 2009.[18] On 28 September 2007 it was announced that the EBU had approved the plan of hosting two semi-finals in 2008.[19]

Based on research conducted by the EBU's tele-voting partner Digame, the semi-finalists were sorted into the two heats through the drawing of lots, which was seeded to keep countries that have a significant history of voting for each other apart. Each broadcaster had to broadcast the semi-final in which they took part, with the broadcasting of the other semi-final being optional. The draw for the semi-final allocation occurred in the Belgrade City Hall on Monday 28 January 2008 at 13:00 CET and was conducted by dancers from the National Dance Ensemble KOLO. First, two envelopes with 'Semi-Final 1' and 'Semi-Final 2' were drawn. Then, three countries from each pot were chosen randomly to take part in the first semi-final and the other three in the second one. The country left in Pot 5 took part in the first envelope that is drawn. While, the country left in Pot 6 in the second one.[20]

The automatic finalist countries chose whether they would broadcast both semi-finals or just one, but viewers from these countries could only vote in one. From the draw conducted, it was decided which of the five finalist countries would broadcast and have voting rights in either of the events. The semi-finals were webcast live through Eurovision.tv.[21] The top nine songs from the televoting qualified for the final, and a tenth was determined by the back-up juries. Twenty-five songs competed in the final.[1]

Semi-final allocation

On 24 January 2008, all 38 countries in the semi-finals were separated into the following pots based on voting history and geographical location:

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3
  •  Albania
  •  Bosnia and Herzegovina
  •  Croatia
  •  Macedonia
  •  Montenegro
  •  Slovenia
  •  Denmark
  •  Estonia
  •  Finland
  •  Iceland
  •  Norway
  •  Sweden
  •  Belgium
  •  Bulgaria
  •  Cyprus
  •  Greece
  •  Netherlands
  •  Turkey
Pot 4 Pot 5 Pot 6
  •  Andorra
  •  Ireland
  •  Latvia
  •  Lithuania
  •  Portugal
  •  Romania
  •  Armenia
  •  Belarus
  •  Georgia
  •  Israel
  •  Moldova
  •  Russia
  •  Ukraine
  •  Azerbaijan
  •  Czech Republic
  •  Hungary
  •  Malta
  •  Poland
  •  San Marino
  •  Switzerland

Running order

The draw to decide the running order of the songs in each Semi-Final and the Final was conducted at the Heads of Delegation meeting on 17 March 2008.[22]

Participating countries

On 21 December 2007, the EBU confirmed that 43 countries would be present in Belgrade.[23] San Marino, as well as the newest EBU member, Azerbaijan, made its debut at the 2008 contest. Austria did not compete; its broadcaster, ORF, said "we've already seen in 2007 that it's not the quality of the song, but the country of origin that determines the decision."[3] Italy, which has not competed since 1997, and which would have been an automatic finalist, was again absent. Slovakia was absent due to budget problems.

The following countries competed in two semi-finals which were broadcast live on Tuesday 20 May and Thursday 22 May 2008. In addition to this, automatic finalists Germany and Spain exercised voting rights at the first semi-final. France, the United Kingdom and Serbia exercised voting rights at the second semi-final. Spain and France each broadcast only the semi-final in which they participated; Germany, Serbia and the UK screened both semi-finals (with Germany broadcasting on a delay).

Results

Semi-final 1

Draw Country Language Artist Song English translation Place Points
01  Montenegro Montenegrin Stefan Filipović "Zauvijek volim te" I love you forever 14 23
02  Israel Hebrew, English Boaz Ma'uda "The Fire in Your Eyes" - 5 104
03  Estonia Serbian, German, Finnish Kreisiraadio "Leto svet" Summer light 18 8
04  Moldova English Geta Burlacu "A Century of Love" - 12 36
05  San Marino Italian Miodio "Complice" Accomplice 19 5
06  Belgium Imaginary[24] Ishtar "O Julissi" - 17 16
07  Azerbaijan English Elnur and Samir "Day After Day" - 6 96
08  Slovenia English, Slovene Rebeka Dremelj "Vrag naj vzame" To hell with it 11 36
09  Norway English Maria Haukaas Storeng "Hold On Be Strong" - 4 106
10  Poland English Isis Gee "For Life" - 10 42
11  Ireland English [A] Dustin the Turkey "Irelande Douze Pointe" Ireland, twelve points 15 22
12  Andorra English, Catalan Gisela "Casanova" - 16 22
13  Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnian Laka "Pokušaj" Try 9 72
14  Armenia English Sirusho "Qélé, Qélé" Come on, come on 2 139
15  Netherlands English Hind "Your Heart Belongs to Me" - 13 27
16  Finland Finnish Teräsbetoni "Missä miehet ratsastaa" Where men ride 8 79
17  Romania Romanian, Italian Nico and Vlad "Pe-o margine de lume" On an edge of the world 7 94
18  Russia English Dima Bilan "Believe" - 3 135
19  Greece English Kalomira "Secret Combination" - 1 156

Semi-final 2

Draw Country Language Artist Song English translation Place Points
01  Iceland English Euroband "This Is My Life" - 8 68
02  Sweden English Charlotte Perrelli "Hero" - 12 54
03  Turkey Turkish Mor ve Ötesi "Deli" Crazy 7 85
04  Ukraine English Ani Lorak "Shady Lady" - 1 152
05  Lithuania English Jeronimas Milius "Nomads in the Night" - 16 30
06  Albania Albanian Olta Boka "Zemrën e lamë peng" Hearts trapped in time 9 67
07  Switzerland Italian Paolo Meneguzzi "Era stupendo" It was wonderful 13 47
08  Czech Republic English Tereza Kerndlová "Have Some Fun" - 18 9
09  Belarus English [B] Ruslan Alekhno "Hasta la Vista" See You Soon 17 27
10  Latvia English Pirates of the Sea "Wolves of the Sea" - 6 86
11  Croatia Croatian Kraljevi Ulice and 75 cents "Romanca" Romance 4 112
12  Bulgaria English Deep Zone and Balthazar "DJ, Take Me Away" - 11 56
13  Denmark English Simon Mathew "All Night Long" - 3 112
14  Georgia English Diana Gurtskaya "Peace Will Come" - 5 107
15  Hungary English, Hungarian Csézy "Candlelight" - 19 6
16  Malta English [C] Morena "Vodka" - 14 38
17  Cyprus Greek Evdokia Kadi "Femme Fatale" Fatal woman 15 36
18  Macedonia English Tamara, Vrčak and Adrijan "Let Me Love You" - 10 64
19  Portugal Portuguese Vânia Fernandes "Senhora do mar (Negras águas)" Lady of the sea (Dark Waters) 2 120

Final

The finalists were:

The final was held on 24 May 2008 and was won by Russia.

Draw Country Language Artist Song English translation Place Points
01  Romania Romanian, Italian Nico and Vlad "Pe-o margine de lume" On an edge of the world 20 45
02  United Kingdom English Andy Abraham "Even If" - 25 [D] 14
03  Albania Albanian Olta Boka "Zemrën e lamë peng" Hearts trapped in time 17 55
04  Germany English No Angels "Disappear" - 23 [D] 14
05  Armenia English Sirusho "Qélé, Qélé" Come on, come on 4 199
06  Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnian Laka "Pokušaj" Try 10 110
07  Israel Hebrew, English Boaz Ma'uda "The Fire in Your Eyes" - 9 124
08  Finland Finnish Teräsbetoni "Missä miehet ratsastaa" Where men ride 22 35
09  Croatia Croatian Kraljevi Ulice and 75 cents "Romanca" Romance 21 44
10  Poland English Isis Gee "For Life" - 24 [D] 14
11  Iceland English Euroband "This is My Life" - 14 64
12  Turkey Turkish Mor ve Ötesi "Deli" Crazy 7 138
13  Portugal Portuguese Vânia Fernandes "Senhora do mar (Negras águas)" Lady of the sea (Dark waters) 13 69
14  Latvia English Pirates of the Sea "Wolves of the Sea" - 12 83
15  Sweden English Charlotte Perrelli "Hero" - 18 47
16  Denmark English Simon Mathew "All Night Long" - 15 60
17  Georgia English Diana Gurtskaya "Peace Will Come" - 11 83
18  Ukraine English Ani Lorak "Shady Lady" - 2 230
19  France English, French Sébastien Tellier "Divine" - 19 47
20  Azerbaijan English Elnur and Samir "Day After Day" - 8 132
21  Greece English Kalomira "Secret Combination" - 3 218
22  Spain Spanish, English Rodolfo Chikilicuatre "Baila el Chiki-chiki" Dance the Chiki-chiki 16 55
23  Serbia Serbian Jelena Tomašević "Oro" (Оро) Hora 6 160
24  Russia English Dima Bilan "Believe" - 1 272
25  Norway English Maria Haukaas Storeng "Hold On Be Strong" - 5 182

Voting during the final

Countries revealed their votes in the following order:[25]

  1.  United Kingdom
  2.  Macedonia
  3.  Ukraine
  4.  Germany
  5.  Estonia
  6.  Bosnia and Herzegovina
  7.  Albania
  8.  Belgium
  9.  San Marino
  10.  Latvia
  11.  Bulgaria
  12.  Serbia
  13.  Israel
  14.  Cyprus
  15.  Moldova
  1.  Iceland
  2.  France
  3.  Romania
  4.  Portugal
  5.  Norway
  6.  Hungary
  7.  Andorra
  8.  Poland
  9.  Slovenia
  10.  Armenia
  11.  Czech Republic
  12.  Spain
  13.  Netherlands
  14.  Turkey
  1.  Malta
  2.  Ireland
  3.  Switzerland
  4.  Azerbaijan
  5.  Greece
  6.  Finland
  7.  Croatia
  8.  Sweden
  9.  Belarus
  10.  Lithuania
  11.  Russia
  12.  Montenegro
  13.  Georgia
  14.  Denmark

Scoreboards

Semi-final 1

Televoting Results
Total Score Montenegro Israel Estonia Moldova San Marino Belgium Azerbaijan Slovenia Norway Poland Ireland Andorra Bosnia and Herzegovina Armenia Netherlands Finland Romania Russia Greece Germany Spain
Contestants Montenegro 23 1 10 12
Israel 104 5 2 7 10 4 10 4 7 5 7 6 10 6 8 5 4 4
Estonia 8 1 7
Moldova 36 5 5 1 6 10 5 4
San Marino 5 2 3
Belgium 16 6 10
Azerbaijan 96 3 5 4 10 5 10 5 8 3 2 4 5 7 10 7 8
Slovenia 36 10 2 2 1 2 0 10 4 1 2 2
Norway 106 4 6 8 3 7 1 7 2 7 8 10 4 8 5 12 4 7 1 2
Poland 42 10 3 2 12 1 2 3 1 5 3
Ireland 22 1 3 7 4 1 2 1 2 1
Andorra 22 4 3 1 1 1 12
Bosnia and Herzegovina 72 12 1 6 4 12 12 3 7 8 7
Armenia 139 6 10 2 5 8 12 5 3 12 2 3 6 12 4 5 12 12 10 10
Netherlands 27 1 3 8 2 7 3 3
Finland 79 2 12 8 4 2 3 6 5 6 12 1 4 6 2 6
Romania 94 8 12 6 6 6 6 5 3 7 6 5 3 1 1 8 3 8
Russia 135 8 12 10 7 3 8 7 8 8 4 4 7 12 2 6 8 10 6 5
Greece 156 7 7 5 4 12 10 12 8 4 6 10 5 8 10 8 3 12 6 12 7

Semi-final 2

Televoting Results
Total Score Iceland Sweden Turkey Ukraine Lithuania Albania Switzerland Czech Republic Belarus Latvia Croatia Bulgaria Denmark Georgia Hungary Malta Cyprus Macedonia Portugal France Serbia United Kingdom
Contestants Iceland 68 10 3 1 2 5 4 1 2 10 7 5 1 5 8 4
Sweden 54 8 2 3 1 3 12 1 7 4 3 1 3 6
Turkey 85 6 5 12 7 3 7 8 5 4 8 10 10
Ukraine 152 6 3 12 7 1 12 12 6 7 12 7 12 8 8 10 6 12 3 8
Lithuania 30 12 10 8
Albania 67 1 7 8 3 10 1 5 10 12 2 5 3
Switzerland 47 10 5 5 12 7 1 7
Czech Republic 9 1 2 1 5
Belarus 27 10 6 5 4 2
Latvia 86 7 8 2 12 5 6 6 1 6 6 6 4 10 2 5
Croatia 112 4 4 5 7 5 3 6 3 7 7 6 3 8 10 6 10 6 2 10
Bulgaria 56 5 6 6 1 2 2 1 1 3 2 8 7 1 6 5
Denmark 112 12 12 4 8 4 5 10 4 8 3 2 3 12 4 5 3 8 4 1
Georgia 107 2 1 10 12 10 8 10 10 4 2 10 12 2 7 7
Hungary 6 1 1 4
Malta 38 3 8 6 4 4 3 4 4 2
Cyprus 36 4 2 2 8 2 5 1 12
Macedonia 64 2 7 7 8 4 12 10 2 12
Portugal 120 10 5 8 4 6 12 7 8 3 8 5 7 6 3 3 12 6 7

Final

Televoting Results
Total Score Romania United Kingdom Albania Germany Armenia Bosnia and Herzegovina Israel Finland Croatia Poland Iceland Turkey Portugal Latvia Sweden Denmark Georgia Ukraine France Azerbaijan Greece Spain Serbia Russia Norway Montenegro Estonia Moldova San Marino Belgium Slovenia Ireland Andorra Netherlands Lithuania Switzerland Czech Republic Belarus Bulgaria Hungary Malta Cyprus Macedonia
Contestants Romania 45 6 4 4 12 12 1 3 3
United Kingdom 14 6 8
Albania 55 1 8 1 1 10 7 3 4 8 12
Germany 14 2 12
Armenia 199 4 2 6 6 8 12 1 10 2 12 7 12 12 10 5 12 1 2 8 12 5 12 12 7 8 10 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina 110 5 6 12 6 10 2 2 3 12 10 10 10 2 7 7 1 5
Israel 124 6 4 3 6 5 8 2 5 3 5 6 7 1 7 6 3 5 6 10 5 3 3 3 1 4 2 3 2
Finland 35 2 7 1 7 4 10 4
Croatia 44 1 2 2 10 3 5 1 1 3 1 2 8 3 2
Poland 14 4 10
Iceland 64 6 4 7 7 2 8 12 4 8 6
Turkey 138 8 8 10 10 8 4 4 6 4 10 12 2 2 4 10 10 6 3 5 5 7
Portugal 69 4 3 6 3 8 8 1 5 6 10 5 10
Latvia 83 10 4 4 8 3 6 2 2 3 7 12 2 10 3 7
Sweden 47 3 1 5 3 8 1 2 7 2 1 1 12 1
Denmark 60 3 12 5 7 5 12 3 2 1 2 2 2 4
Georgia 83 10 2 4 1 8 8 4 4 7 5 3 5 4 6 5 7
Ukraine 230 3 5 8 5 3 10 3 7 10 5 8 12 10 7 10 10 6 7 6 8 4 4 7 1 2 6 6 6 8 10 7 6 10 6 4
France 47 2 4 2 1 8 3 4 5 1 6 3 8
Azerbaijan 132 2 1 3 7 12 4 7 10 3 10 8 7 1 7 2 7 10 8 3 12 8
Greece 218 12 12 12 12 8 7 5 5 3 7 1 3 4 2 3 6 3 8 3 6 1 4 12 8 6 4 8 6 5 5 2 10 8 2 12 3
Spain 55 1 1 1 1 3 10 1 5 8 4 12 4 4
Serbia 160 7 5 8 3 12 10 4 2 6 7 2 5 4 6 12 1 12 8 12 6 1 4 7 1 5 10
Russia 272 10 6 7 12 4 12 10 6 6 5 6 12 8 12 1 8 7 5 10 5 8 12 10 3 7 5 5 1 12 7 12 6 10 8 8 6
Norway 182 5 7 7 7 2 7 12 1 8 10 2 2 6 12 10 5 6 5 2 6 4 5 8 5 7 2 7 1 4 4 5 1 4 3
The table is ordered by appearance in the final, then by appearance in the semi-finals.

12 points

Below is a summary of all 12 points in the final:

N. Recipient nation Voting nation
8 Armenia Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Georgia, Greece, Netherlands, Poland, Russia
7 Russia Armenia, Belarus, Estonia, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine
6 Greece Albania, Cyprus, Germany, Romania, San Marino, United Kingdom
4 Serbia Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Slovenia, Switzerland
2 Azerbaijan Hungary, Turkey
Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia, Serbia
Denmark Iceland, Norway
Norway Finland, Sweden
Romania Moldova, Spain
1 Albania Macedonia
Germany Bulgaria
Iceland Denmark
Latvia Ireland
Spain Andorra
Sweden Malta
Turkey Azerbaijan
Ukraine Portugal

Broadcasting

Semi-finals broadcasts

As stated above, a country only has to broadcast the final and the semi-final when it is one of the competitors or voters. The United Kingdom,[26] San Marino, Greece, Croatia,[27] Ireland, Germany,[28] the Netherlands,[29] Norway,[30] Malta,[31] Serbia,[32] Finland,[33] Bosnia and Herzegovina,[34] Denmark,[35] Portugal,[36] Cyprus,[37] Israel,[38] Estonia,[39] Turkey,[40] Latvia,[41] Slovenia,[42] Russia,[43] Ukraine,[44] Lithuania, the Czech Republic,[45] Andorra,[46] Albania,[47] Bulgaria, Iceland,[48] Sweden,[49] Romania[50] and Australia confirmed they would broadcast both semi-finals (some in delay and some live).

International broadcasts

 Australia
Although Australia is not eligible to enter, the contest was broadcast on SBS. The first semi-final was broadcast on Friday 23 May at 19:30 local time, with the second semi-final on Saturday 24 May 2008 at 19:30 local time, and the Final on Sunday 25 May 2008 at 19:30 local time,[51] amongst a weekend of Eurovision-themed programming.[52] SBS local host, Julia Zemiro, provided introductory and concluding segments with SBS otherwise broadcasting the BBC's coverage and commentary.[53] In recent years the contest has been one of SBS's highest-rating programmes in terms of viewer numbers.[54] The final rated well for SBS with 427,000 viewers tuning in for the final with 421,000 for the second semi-final and 272,000 for the first semi-final.[55]
 Austria
In Austria, ORF broadcast the contest live and received extremely high TV ratings, despite its withdrawal. However, it did not broadcast the semifinals on 20 and 22 May, though Austrians were able to watch these on German television via ARD.[56]
 Italy
No Italian broadcaster proper showed the contest, but San Marinese SMRTV, which broadcast live the full event on both TV and radio, is available in some parts of Italy: Romagna (and a small part of Emilia, including Bologna), northern Marche, and southern Veneto, including Venice.[57]
 Worldwide
A live broadcast of the Eurovision Song Contest was available worldwide via satellite through European streams such as TVRi, ERT World, ARMTV, TVE Internacional, TRT International, TVP Polonia, RTP Internacional, RTS Sat and SVT Europa. The official Eurovision Song Contest website also provided a live stream without commentary via the peer to peer medium Octoshape.

High-definition broadcasts

RTS broadcast the event in 1080i high-definition (HD) and 5.1 Surround Sound. The new high-definition television system was in place at the Belgrade Arena by April 2008.[58] This is the second year that the event was broadcast live in HD. BBC HD broadcast the contest in High Definition in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Swedish broadcaster SVT broadcast both the semi-final and the final on their HD-channel SVT HD. Lithuanian broadcaster LRT broadcast both the semi-final and the final in 1080i high-definition (HD) on their channel LTV. The same occurred on Swiss HD channel HD suisse; on this channel viewers were able to choose the language of the commentary while viewing a semi-final or final of the Eurovision Song Contest. However, all other countries broadcast the show only in standard definition, and the event will only be available to buy on a standard-definition DVD; it will not be released on Blu-ray Disc.

Returning artists

Artist Country Previous year(s)
Charlotte Perrelli  Sweden 1999 (winner)
Dima Bilan  Russia 2006
Roberto Meloni (part of Pirates of the Sea)  Latvia 2007 (part of Bonaparti.lv)

Commentators

Spokespersons

Gallery

Notes

  • A ^ "Irelande Douze Pointe" is mostly in English, but includes words and phrases in French, German and Spanish.
  • B ^ "Hasta la Vista" is in English, but contains three words in Spanish.
  • C ^ Vodka" is in English, but also includes 2 Russian words excluding 'vodka': На здоровье/Na zdorovye (Cheers).
  • D ^ Poland, the United Kingdom and Germany all received a total of 14 points. Whilst the rules of the contest describe mechanisms to break a tie should it be for first place, it is ambiguous as to whether the procedure applies to other rankings. Should the rules apply, Germany having received more twelve points than the others would be ranked 23rd, Poland having scored more ten points than the UK would be ranked 24th, leaving the UK in 25th and last place. A table located at the contest's official website, Eurovision.tv, shows the ties as broken, however in previous years such as 2007, 2004 and 2002, the same source has shown unbroken ties.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Eurovision 2008 - format confirmed!". ESCToday.com. http://www.esctoday.com/news/read/9690. Retrieved 2007-11-24. 
  2. "San Marino in Belgrade confirmed". ESCToday.com. 21 November 2007. http://www.esctoday.com/news/read/9694. Retrieved 2007-11-21. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 "Austria will not go to Belgrade". ESCToday.com. 2007-11-20. http://www.esctoday.com/news/read/9678. Retrieved 2007-11-20. 
  4. "ŠERIFOVIĆEVA I BREGOVIĆ U FINALU EVROVIZIJE". evropesma.org. 2008-04-21. http://www.evropesma.org/sr/node/1582. Retrieved 2008-04-21. 
  5. "Ukrajinka digla Arenu na noge". http://blic.co.rs/zabava.php?id=42736. 
  6. "Jovana Janković & Željko Joksimović the hosts". Oikotimes.com. 2008-03-04. http://www.oikotimes.com/v2/index.php?file=articles&id=2793. Retrieved 2008-03-04. 
  7. "Revamped eurovision.tv site launched!". ESCToday.com. 2008-01-15. http://www.esctoday.com/news/read/10133. Retrieved 2008-01-15. 
  8. "Belgrade 2008: The Confluence Of Sound". Eurovision.tv. http://www.eurovision.tv/page/news/belgrade-2008?id=430. Retrieved 2008-01-30. 
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