Eurovision Song Contest: The Transformation of the Voting System along with the New Visual Technologies

The transformation of the voting system along with the new visual technologies present a fair show more than ever for the audience.

Music has a huge impact on people. Especially, it brings people together. As one of the biggest international song contest in the world created by the European Broadcasting Union, The Eurovision Song Contest gathers participants from diverse cultures all around the Europe and offers a wonderful feast for the eyes. Although it has also been broadcast in non-European countries, some of us stopped watching the contest or do not want to watch it.

There are many articles about Eurovision Song Contest. However, in this article, Eurovision Song Contest was discussed truly in from the point of view of the audience.

Here is the question: “What do people think about the contest?”

“I think it is interesting for new talents from different countries with different cultures to be able to show to the rest of the world their talent. It helps people to understand that music is universal and have many different genre depending on the countries. It allows people to discover music they probably didn’t know before. At the same time, I feel like English songs or countries singing in English more often winners, which is kind of sad for other beautiful language and type of music,” says Jeremy.

“I have grown up watching the Eurovision and watch it every single year either with my friends or family. There is always a few crazy performances which is why I love to watch it,” says Kym.

“It is cringey, I think many people like it for the campness of the acts but for me I just feel it is bland, it would be nicer if it focused on the individual cultures of the countries. However, everything is too similar,” says James. 

Let us update you about the process of progress! Since the first contest in 1956, it has been improved incredibly over time. While only seven countries participated in 1956, each submitting two songs; forty-three countries participated in 2018. Each participant has been entitled to enter just one song because the number of the participant increased in years. Since 2000, people have been able to watch the contest online via The Eurovision website and its official YouTube channel. Plus, the improvements in the quality of technical production enchants the audience. Technicians create the most technologically advanced stages ever with pyrotechnics, flame graphics, powerful lighting, and the world’s largest video projectors. The result is outstanding because the stage’s dramatic effect enables the each participant to perform with a unique impression.

Moreover, good news for people who did not watch The Eurovision because of the political aspect of the contest: the voting system was changed in 2016! According to the new voting system, firstly, the national juries from participating countries have presented their points. After that, televoting points have been combined together, and finally, they have been presented from the lowest to the highest. This system can hinder the political aspect of the contest. Furthermore, critical changes can be witnessed after the televoting votes regardless of how the juries vote. Therefore, people cannot know the winner until the end of the contest. This new voting format can also add some new sense of wonder into the contest.

 While the fast paced songs with a stage full of dancers sometimes won the contest, the songs which evoke strong sentiment won the contest, such as the song of the Portuguese singer Salvador Sobral. Under the new voting system, he won the 2017 contest with a Portuguese song, and he is the highest-scoring winner. Under the previous voting system, Alexander Rybak of Norway received the highest-scoring winner title in 2009. Furthermore, Ireland won the contest for seven times, and it is the only country that won three times consecutively which made it the most successful country among all countries in the contest. Additionally, most of the winners have some common points. Each of them had a distinctive performance. Also, they expressed the emotions successfully with their songs and gestures. Most importantly, they honoured their cultures by presenting their countries to the world. Hopefully, the breathtaking spectacle will continue to create TV magic, and it is worth-watching.