Austrian national television ORF has commented on the new voting system in the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest 2009 to be held in Moscow, why Austria will stay out of the contest two years in a row and why the broadcast of the final will be a tricky task.
Edgar Böhm, Head of Entertainment, stated that ORF do not intend to send an artist into unknown territories "Our opinion towards the contest has not changed in the slightest as the rules have been altered yet again" he concludes.
This ishighly contradictory as prior to the 2008 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, ORF had explained their withdrawal due the current voting system, stating that Austria would not return unless there was a change of the rules, as far as the voting was concerned.The voting system has been changed into a mix of jury and televoting, nevertheless, ORF will not come back in 2009. However, the final on May 16th 2009 will be broadcasted albeitthere is a time collision yet to be solved as the Eurovision final is being held at the same time as the Life Ball, Austria’s annual charity event for AIDS. Mr Böhm stated: "It is important to us to broadcast both events and we intend to find an optimal solution for our viewers!"
