Printable version of thread
Click here to view this topic in its original format
BuzzJack Music Forum _ Eurovision Song Contest _ Eurovision and the Coronavirus
Posted by: diva thin muffin 12th March 2020, 05:39 PM
Seeing as discussion surrounding the Novel Covid-19 virus seem to pop up in regards to Eurovision I thought it'd be better suited to its own discussion as it's obviously something that all of us in this forum care about so post all the info you see regarding Eurovision and the Coronavirus.
So far the EBU have said they're going to do everything they can to avoid having to postpone / cancel but that doesn't mean the contest will definitely go ahead as per usual. It might be presented to an empty arena like the danish NF or it might happen in a studio rather than a big arena. Everything about this is still unclear but the virus is definitely already taking its toll on the contest as both The Roop from Lithuania and Eden Alene from Israel have said they will not be coming to the Netherlands this weekend to film their postcards so it's unclear how they will go about doing them instead or what will happen.
Personally I think the EBU should postpone until late june or so. I think the hype will still be here and we all want it to go ahead once things have died down but I think mid may is just a bit too close for comfort.
Posted by: Monzo 12th March 2020, 05:42 PM
I think they should stick to the original date but without audience. I'm sure the Dutch tv station got some studios for their own tv shows where Eurovision could take place.
Posted by: Esmerelda 12th March 2020, 05:51 PM
At this point I would be surprised if Eurovision takes place as normal in May.
Posted by: The S***e 12th March 2020, 06:41 PM
They could have a remote audience of people in their own homes via loads of skype connections to maintain the atmosphere.
Much better off delaying it though.
Posted by: Atonement 12th March 2020, 06:49 PM
I hope they delay it. But that is probably too expensive.
Posted by: Jerick 12th March 2020, 07:09 PM
I hope they will delay it too, it's not the same without an audience
Posted by: Cqmerqn 12th March 2020, 07:18 PM
I think they should cancel it completely and let’s face it, it’s 99.999% going to happen at this point.
Posted by: ScottyEm 12th March 2020, 07:53 PM
I think the most likely outcome is that it goes ahead without an audience rather than an outright cancellation. Postponing would be a near impossibility as you have to have all 41 acts available at the same time (not to mention everyone behind the scenes) to all be available at the same time - and a significant period of time.
There’s two months to go, a lot more will be realised and it’s likely impact in the coming days/weeks.
Posted by: LexC 12th March 2020, 08:15 PM
And even if it is postponed, there's a question of how long for and how long that would give the winner the chance to prepare to host 2021 (which could be hard enough for some countries with a full 12 months anyway) and wouldn't leave the broadcasters scrambling to find an extra seven hours of television to put on in ESC's place at the last minute and hosting without an audience still leaves people vulnerable to the potential effects of coronavirus given you've got delegations from over 40 countries all travelling long distances to be in the same space BUT that said it would probably be the least worst option available to them and still leaves the television audiences with something to see which is ultimately the point.
Posted by: diva thin muffin 13th March 2020, 08:47 AM
From https://eurovisionworld.com/esc/coronavirus-and-eurovision-2020-decision-in-april:
The Netherlands has just decided to ban public gatherings larger than 100 people because of the coronavirus pandemic. How will it affect Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam?
The preparations for Eurovision 2020 continue as planned, and no decisions have been made about the fate of the contest, says Rotterdam tourism alderman Said Kasmi:
– I think there should be an examination in mid-April about how things stand then. So we still have plenty of time
The organisers will start constructing the Eurovision stage inside the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam in the first week of April, and a decision will be made before the construction begins, according to the mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb:
– For me the final day is the moment we start to build up the stage. At that day you have to clarify: will Eurovision take place or not? We have two options: The EBU and AVROTROS (Dutch broadcaster) can decide about organising or not. If their decision contradicts the health advice I get, in my opinion we have to cancel. I have to take my responsibility. But it’s too early for that now, says the Mayor.
Several options
The European Broadcasting Union, EBU, is working on different scenarios for organising and holding Eurovision 2020. It all depends on how the outbreak and spread of the coronavirus develops in the Netherlands and the rest of Europe.
We have listed six possible options for Eurovision 2020:
No changes – Eurovision 2020 will be held as planned
No audience, arena – Limited amount of audience / no audience (in the arena)
No audience, TV studio – Broadcasting Eurovision in a TV studio without audience
National broadcast – Every country will broadcast the song from it's own location
Postponement – with a number of possible options
Cancellation – This option is currently NOT on the table at the moment
POLL
Which option do you prefer if Eurovision 2020 can't be ordinary held?
613 45% No audience, arena
170 12% No audience, TV studio
217 16% National broadcast
331 24% Postponement
42 3% Cancellation
Total 1,387 votes
Sietse Bakker, executive producer of Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam, says that the organisation is keeping a close eye on the news about the coronavirus:
– You see events being canceled or postponed all over the world. Fortunately we still have a few months to go. We hope that the worst will be over and that the situation will then stabilize, says Sietse Bakker.
EBU is closely monitoring the situation concerning the spread of coronavirus and taking all necessary health and safety precautions. The Eurovision organisation follows the guidelines from The Dutch National Institute for Health and Environment (RIVM).
Posted by: 🍆 13th March 2020, 10:28 AM
those 3% who voted to cancel can go f*** themselves with a rusty shovel and that's on PERIODT
Posted by: Liаm 13th March 2020, 10:33 AM
When there's other measures in place I don't see why they should cancel at all, they definitely shouldn't do it as normal but there's ways to do it safely but still have something many people enjoy going forward.
Posted by: 🍆 13th March 2020, 10:46 AM
i guess it also depends on whether some of the artists won't want to travel to Netherlands because of all this but contracts have no doubt been signed and broadcasters don't want to be fined..
Posted by: Monzo 13th March 2020, 11:02 AM
Eurovision is not an event that counts on fans in the arena like sports does. For the first decades of Eurovision there was no problem having no or little audience at all and those were the days with the biggest Eurovision hits. That's why a national broadcast where every country will broadcast the song from it's own location should be no problem.
Posted by: *Tim 13th March 2020, 11:09 AM
Financially it highkey does though
Posted by: 🍆 13th March 2020, 11:36 AM
There's ad revenue and sponsors which I assume makes up the majority of the profit. I'm sure Rotterdam will survive. Especially with all the extra costs for building the stage, all the staff, etc. involved.
Posted by: zenon 13th March 2020, 02:32 PM
It better not take place in an empty arena, just postpone it until the autumn.
Posted by: LexC 13th March 2020, 05:01 PM
The Ahoy Rotterdam is available for about a month in late July/early August by which point the "peak" of the disease will likely be over so I guess it could be delayed until the 4/6/8th August as the best way to have an actual proper Eurovision experience. The only thing I guess it would clash with would be the Olympics but the main events in Tokyo won't be taking place during Primetime in Europe so that's a relatively safe overlap.
Posted by: diva thin muffin 13th March 2020, 05:43 PM
I'd be fine with Eurovision being postponed to late july / early august honestly. It'd be weird to wait so long after everyone picked their songs but still at least we'd get a proper Eurovision experience.
Posted by: Feel_The_Fever 14th March 2020, 02:23 AM
Ya me to plus it would be no time til the 2021 kicks off leaving it only 10 months.
Posted by: Vülker 14th March 2020, 10:31 AM
Guys, we got this!
Posted by: dan.G 17th March 2020, 05:06 PM
Looks like we'll soon find out whether it's getting cancelled then.