Eurovision 2007 international music contest. Singer Andrei Danilko (aka Verka Serduchka) (R) gives an interview in his hotel suite.
Photo: Alexandr Zhdanov
| Other Photos |
 |
|
 |
Eurovision Faces Reconsideration
// Ukraine complained at Russia to the European Broadcasting Union
The National TV Company of Ukraine (NTKU) addressed on Friday an official complaint to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) demanding it to reconsider the results of Eurovision song contest and to exclude Russia from participating in Eurovision-2008. NTKU said the results of voting in Ukraine were affected by Russia’s Channel One. It broadcasts thru cable network in Ukraine. NTKU said it intends to claim up to $4.4 million from Channel One.
Vice-president of the National TV Company of Ukraine (NTKU) Andrei Krasnoshchok said it intends to file a complaint to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes Eurovision song contest. He said that Russia’s Channel One violated the EBU-approved rules for Eurovision while broadcasting the contest’s final on May 12th: “According to the rules, only one earth station has the right to broadcast Eurovision’s final on the territory of a participating country. Channel One showed the contest in Ukraine, and it might have affected the voting results.”
NTKU president Vitaly Dokalenko said the company will press the EBU to reconsider the results of Eurovision-2007 and to exclude Russia from participating in Eurovision-2008. Besides, Krasnoshchok said that NTKU will ask an arbitration court to collect $0.87-4.4 million from Channel One as compensation “for lost profits”.
Perhaps, NTKU have addressed the EBU because it simply feels offended by the Russian channel. Along with the contest itself, Channel One also broadcasted on May 12th Andrei Malakhov’s talk-show devoted to Eurovision, where the audience was insistently urged to vote for Russia’s Serebro pop-group, while Ukraine’s participant Andrei Danilko was either ignored or made fun of.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of May 26, 2007
|
|
|
