“There are some things that can be done better”, says Martin Österdahl, the executive producer of the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest.

In 2013, SVT’s idea of avoiding the running order draw in favour of giving the host broadcaster the right to sort the running order in order to make a better flow in the broadcast was accepted. Now, the idea is to improve the voting, which currently takes about one hour. “We have some ideas about how to make the end of the contest more exciting”, says Österdahl.

Furthermore, the Big 5 countries should get a bigger place in the contest. It was previously announced that the pre-qualified countries will get to perform during the semi-finals, but it might not be all. “It is pity that the biggest countries show up for the first time only during the final. We have an idea about how they can show up, appear on stage and be as ready and comfortable as the other countries in the final”, adds Österdahl.

More changes regarding the organization of the contest should help managing the budget in a more effective and smart way. The current budget stands at 120 million SEK (€12.92m) which is fewer than the total amount spent in 2013, as 125 million SEK (€13.3m) were spent when the contest was held in Malmö. Right after winning the contest in Vienna, the Swedish Head of Delegation Christer Björkman declared that the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest could be less expensive than the 2013 one. As of September 2015, 50 million SEK (€5.3m) were already invested in the event.

The 2016 Eurovision Song Contest will take place in the host city of Stockholm on the 10, 12 and 14 May at the Globen Arena. A total of 43 countries will participate in the contest, a record number that was also reached in 2008 and 2011.

Stay tuned to ESCToday.com for more news regarding the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.