Moldova to make participation decision in October

The Moldovan broadcaster TRM is one of the poorest participating in the Eurovision Song Contest, something which nearly caused the country to pull out of the 2007 edition held in Helsinki. In the end, however, a compromise was reached stating that Moldova would participate as long as its representative paid the fees connected with the contest themselves.
However, another part of the agreement was that should Moldova enter the Top 10 in Finland, TRM would refund the participants' expenses - something which did indeed happen after Natalia Barbu placed 10th with Fight.
This means that TRM did not actually save any money and since their financial situation has not improved in the meantime the same doubts about their participation in 2008 remain the same as last year. TRM will consider their budget before making a final decision on participation in Belgrade in October of this year.
As Natalia Barbu finished Top 10 in 2007, Moldova is one of the countries prequalified to the 2008 final by right. The next in line for prequalification, should they withdraw, is Bosnia & Herzegovina, who finished 11th.

Georgia to participate in Junior Eurovision

Georgia, for the first time ever, will participate in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest which will be held in the city of Rotterdam, Netherlands on December 8, 2007. Georgian Public Broadcasting (GPB) will present the Georgian participant, who will be selected through a national contest.

In addition, the song, which will be performed at Junior Eurovision – 2007, will be revealed through a competition as well. The essential precondition for entrants is to sing a song in the Georgian language. Children between ages of 10 to 15 will be eligible to participate.

The national contest will be held in three tours. All applications will be discussed during the first tour. Then the regional casting of participants will be held with the 12 best ones being selected. At the final concert, a person, who will depart for Rotterdam, will be revealed.

Deadline for submitting applications is July 10. The selection tours will be held under the auspices of Georgia’s First Lady Sandra Roelofs.

Svante Stockselius visits Belgrade and RTS

source : oikotimes.com

RTS REPORTSMarija Serifovic's win at the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest has brought much joy to the people of Serbia, but it also implies obligations and responsibilities. Svante Stockselius, the supervisor of the ESC, has come to Belgrade to provide the Serbian Broadcasting Corporation with the details of the tasks to be performed. Mr Stockselius talked to the head people of the RTS, visited the Sava Centre and the Expo Centre, the possible venues for the press centre and the fan club, and the Belgrade Arena where the 2008 ESC will take place.

Mr Stockselius was very impressed by Belgrade. 'It is a beautiful city, full of greenery. I was given a wonderful reception. The Belgrade Arena is impressive. It is neither too big, nor too small, which is perfect because we need a certain amount of intimacy, ' said Mr Stockselius. The supervisor of the ESC is satisfied with the way things are going. He pointed out that the RTS should be aware of the fact that there is a lot of work to be done. The RTS Entertainment Department will have the leading role in carrying out the project.

The Cyprus Music Awards 2007 winners

The Cyprus Music Awards 2007 winners

Last night the second edition of the Cyprus Music Awards took place in Nicosia, Cyprus. The show attended by many Greek and Cypriot Eurostars some of them performing on stage. The show will be aired by Sigma TV next week while a Greek TV station will also air it within the month. Here are the gatherings of awards which the Greek and Cypriot Eurostars got last night.

Best Newcomer - Tamta
Best Song Of The Year - Constantinos Christoforou - Stasou Ena Lepto
Best Female Singer - Evridiki
Best Male Singer - Michalis Hatzigiannis
Best Album - Michalis Hatzigiannis - Fili Kai Echtri
Best Single - Michalis Hatzigiannis - Ola I Tipota
Best Video - Anna Vissi - Everything

Καλώς ήρθατε στο νέο ανανεωμένο EUROVISION - CYPRUS

To ESC-CY ανανεώθηκε για να προσφέρει στους αναγνώστες του ένα καλό περιεχόμενο. Το νέο ESC-CY παρέχει στους αναγνώστες του exclusive multimedia (φωτογραφίες , ήχο και βίντεο) . Το ESC-CY σας υπόσχετε ότι θα καλύψει σημαντικά γεγονότα που αφορούν την Eurovision και Junior Eurovision.

Μείνετε συντονισμένοι για να μαθαίνετε πρώτοι ότι αφορά την Eurovision.

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Malta won't withdraw

Many rumours have been circulating on the Internet about the possible withdrawal of several countries for 2008, one of the most popular ones being Malta. However, the Maltese broadcaster has confirmed today that Malta will be present in Belgrade, despite having to start in the semi final of the Eurovision Song Contest for the second consecutive year.
Estonia, who have so far failed to qualify on every single occasion since the semi final was introduced, will also be playing in Belgrade, although ETV are considering their options for Eurolaul, the national final.
Montenegro, who failed to qualify in 2007 on their first attempt as an independent state, have also confirmed their presence in Serbia.
The continued participation of the Czech Republic, however, is more of a confusing matter. After coming last with only one point on their first ever participation, with one of the country's most successful bands, it is as yet unknown whether Czech broadcaster CT will be willing to finance another entry in 2008. However, while esctoday.com awaits confirmation from CT itself, the Czech Eurovision site is still being updated with Eurovision news in Czech, suggesting a continued interest.

Mihai Traistariu builds career

Mihai Traistariu hopes to work with famous producer Tommy Motolla, but the Romanian artist who finished 4th the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest is exploring all his options. That’s why he has also applied to take part in the L.A. Awards, and he is also currently participating in the international New Wave Festival where he is a finalist for that contest.
If anyone in Romania doubted Mihai Traistariu when he declared his intentions to succeed in the international arena, the singer is working to prove them wrong. He is taking many small - but steady - steps on his way to realizing his career dreams. Naturally his 4th place finish in Athens introduced him to a larger audience. Now, he is taking part in the New Wave Festival where he has qualified for the finals in Latvia with the highest score from the semi-final round. This exposure will only benefit him should he attempt to represent Romania in another Eurovision Song Contest.
However, Mihai has recently said that his biggest dream is to make a career overseas in the USA - although he had not tried to get in contact with any US-American managers until a very well-known producer from Portugal and a good friend of Tommy Motolla heard his song contest entry Tornerò during a shopping trip. The Portuguese producer contacted Mihai and suggested they record two songs for Motolla. These songs are finished, one of them is a duet with the famous female Romanian singer Nico (who also took part in various Romanian national finals) and now he is waiting for the producer to visit Romania: ”He will come in the 1st of July to listen to the songs and to find out the results. It’s a formality that has to be done”, Mihai declared.
The singer has also applied to take part in the L.A. Awards. Many prominent international singers like Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas and Anastacia first attracted notice at these awards.
Next week Mihai will be visiting Norway with his girlfriend, perhaps he's also looking for a little summer vacation.