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was introduced for the 2004 Contest (in Istanbul) to create a consistent visual identity. The host country's flag appears in the heart.]] The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Each member country submits a Song to be performed on Live Television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition. Each country participates via one of their national EBU-member Television Station s, whose task it is to select a Singer and a song to represent their country in the international competition. The contest has been broadcast every year since its inauguration in 1956 and is one of the longest-running Television Programme s in the world. It is also one of the most-watched non-sporting events in the world,1 with audience figures having been quoted in recent years as anything between 100 million and 600 million internationally.23 Eurovision has also been broadcast outside Europe to such places as Australia , Azerbaijan , Canada , Egypt , Hong Kong , India , Jordan , Lebanon , New Zealand , South Africa , South Korea , Vietnam , and the United States , despite the fact that these countries do not compete.45 Since the year 2000, the Contest has also been broadcast over the Internet ,6 with more than 74,000 people in almost 140 countries having watched the 2006 edition online.7 The Contest is historically known for often showcasing formulaic, orchestrated Pop Music . However, it has featured a vast, diverse array of songs, including such musical genres as Arab , Armenian , Balkan , Breton , Celtic , Dance , Folk , Greek , Israeli , Latin , Nordic , Pop-rap , Rock and Turkish . ORIGINS In the 1950s, when a did not exist, and the so-called Eurovision Network comprised a terrestrial Microwave Network .10 The name "Eurovision" was first used in relation to the EBU's network by British journalist George Campey in the '' London Evening Standard '' in 1951.11 The first Contest was held in the town of was won by the host nation, Switzerland. The programme was first known as the "Eurovision Grand Prix". This "Grand Prix" name was adopted by the Francophone countries, where the Contest became known as "''Le Grand-Prix Eurovision de la Chanson EuropĂ©enne''".13 The "Grand Prix" has since been dropped and replaced with "''Concours''" (contest) in these countries. The only countries to use the name today are Denmark and Norway, who call the Contest "Melodi Grand Prix". The Eurovision Network is used to carry many news and sports programmes internationally, among other specialised events organised by the EBU.14 However, the Song Contest has by far the highest profile of these programmes, and has long since become synonymous with the name "Eurovision". FORMAT The format of the Contest has changed over the years, though the basic tenets have always been thus: participant countries submit songs, which are performed live in a television programme transmitted across the Eurovision Network by the EBU simultaneously to all countries. A "country" as a participant is represented by one television broadcaster from that country. The programme is hosted by one of the participant countries, and the transmission is sent from the to be awarded to the winning songwriters, and the winning country is invited to host the event the following year. The programme is invariably opened by one or more Presenter s, welcoming viewers to the show. Most host countries choose to capitalise on the opportunity afforded them by hosting a programme with such a wide-ranging international audience, and it is common to see the presentation interspersed with video footage of scenes from the host nation, as if advertising for Tourism . Between the songs and the announcement of the voting an interval act is performed, which can be any form of entertainment imaginable. Interval entertainment has included such acts as The Wombles ( 1974 )15 and the first international presentation of Riverdance ( 1994 ).16 The theme music played before and after the broadcasts of the Eurovision Song Contest (and other Eurovision broadcasts) is the prelude to Marc-Antoine Charpentier 's Te Deum . The Eurovision Song Contest final is traditionally held on a spring Saturday evening, at 19:00 ). Usually one Saturday in May is chosen, although the Contest has been held as early as March. Since 2004, due to the increasing number of eligible countries which have wished to participate, a qualifying round — known as the Semi Final — has been held on the Thursday before the final (in 2004, it was held on the Wednesday before the Final). PARTICIPATION See Also: Participation in the Eurovision Song Contest Eligible participants include Active Members (as opposed to Associate Members) of the European Broadcasting Union. Active members are those whose states fall within the European Broadcasting Area , or otherwise those who are members of the Council Of Europe .17 The European Broadcasting Area is defined by the International Telecommunication Union :18 The "European Broadcasting Area" is bounded on the west by the western boundary of Region 1, on the east by the meridian 40° East of Greenwich and on the south by the parallel 30° North so as to include the western part of the USSR, the northern part of Saudi Arabia and that part of those countries bordering the Mediterranean within these limits. In addition, Iraq, Jordan and that part of the territory of Turkey lying outside the above limits are included in the European Broadcasting Area. The western boundary of " Region 1 " is a line drawn west of Iceland down the centre of the Atlantic Ocean .19 Active members include broadcasting organisations whose transmissions are made available to (virtually) all of the Population of the country in which they are based. If an EBU Active Member wishes to participate, they must fulfil conditions as laid down by the rules of the Contest (of which a separate copy is drafted annually). As of , this includes the necessity to have broadcast the previous year's programme within their country, and paid the EBU a participation fee in advance of the Deadline specified in the rules of the Contest for the year in which they wish to participate. Eligibility to participate is not determined by Geographic inclusion within the continent of Europe , despite the "Euro" in "Eurovision" — nor has it anything to do with the European Union . Israel, a Middle Eastern country has been involved since 1973. In 1980, Morocco — a North Africa n country — participated in the Contest. Forty-five countries have participated at least once. These are listed here alongside the year in which they made their debut: | ||
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