The format for the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest will be the same as the last two years, with two semi-finals preceding the final. Hosts Norway as well as Eurovision's "Big 4"; France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom will qualify automatically for the final and will be joined by ten countries from each semi-final. The 34 countries competing in the semi-final, will be drawn into their semi-finals on February 7th.

The 50/50 mix of public televoting and a jury of experts which was introduced in 2009 was deemed to be a success and will not only be retained for the final, but will also be used in the semi-finals in 2010. Another change in the voting procedure, which has been confirmed is that televoting will not be limited to a ten minute period after the last song has been performed but instead the public will be able to vote from the moment the first song is performed. It has now been confirmed that the presentation of the votes will stay the same as the last few years, will all the semi-finalists, continuing to vote individually, and only the 12, 10, and 8 points being called out.

After investigating the option of  NRK's budget for the contest is 17 million euros, making it one of the biggest budgets in Eurovision history, but considerably smaller that the rumoured 30 million euros spend on the contest in Moscow in 2009. The current recession has already meant that three countries which competed in Moscow, will be missing in Oslo, with Czech Republic, Hungary and Montenegro opting out, however Georgia will return after missing out in 2009.

Even before Alexander Rybak's record breaking win in Moscow, Norwegian broadcaster NRK were in negotiations to host the 2010 contest in the Telenor Arena (above) located at Fornebu in the municipality of Bærum in Western Oslo. The venue was officially announced in early July, after the Oslo Spektrum, which hosted the 1996 Eurovision Song Contest was ruled out to host the contest due to its smaller size and capacity.

Telenor Arena is a multi-use indoor stadium used mostly for football matches and is the home of the Stabæk football club. The stadium was opened in the spring of 2009.  In June 2008, the telecommunications company Telenor acquired the naming rights to the stadium in a deal lasting until 2018. Prior to this, the stadium was known informally as Fornebu Arena, the name which will be used for Eurovision, although it has been confirmed the telecoms company Telenor will be one of the sponsors of the 2010 event.

It is also referred to by supporters as Hangar'n ("the hangar" in English), as the stadium resembles a airline hangar and is located on the premises of the former main airport of Oslo. The structure is a single-tiered bowl attached to a seven-storey building on one side containing retail space, restaurants and bars for the premium-priced seats, executive boxes, and offices. It was originally planned that the stadium would have a retractable roof, but due to the high costs involved it was decided that there would instead be a fixed roof covering both the stands and the pitch. For football matches and other sporting events the capacity is approximately 15,600, whereas for concerts it can be up to 23,000. It is believed that the capacity for Eurovision will be around 20,000, due to television requirements, making it the second biggest live audience in Eurovision history, only beaten by the Parken Arena in Copenhagen in 2001.

Tickets for the Eurovision 2010 shows went on sale on February 8th on Billettservice website, and there are still tickets available for the semi-finals and rehearsals. There may be some additional tickets made available for the final at a later date. First Semi-Final Live Show on Tuesday 25th May at 21:00 CET (doors open at 18:30 & close at 20:15) Tickets: 72 Euros (A), 54 Euros (B), 36 Euros (C) Second Semi-Final Live Show on Thursday 27th May at 21:00 CET (doors open at 18:30 & close at 20:15) Tickets: 72 Euros (A), 54 Euros (B), 36 Euros (C) Second Rehearsal of the Final on Friday 28th May at 21:00 CET (doors open at 18:30 & close at 20:15) Tickets: 72 Euros (A), 54 Euros (B), 36 Euros (C) Third Rehearsal of the Final on Saturday 29th May at 13:00 CET (doors open at 10:30 & close at 12:15) Tickets: 72 Euros (A), 54 Euros (B), 36 Euros (C) FINAL LIVE SHOW on Saturday 29th May at 21:00 CET (doors open at 18:15 & close at 20:15) Tickets: 96 Euros (A), 72 Euros (B), 48 Euros (C) There is a booking fee of 2 to 4 Euros based on the type of tickets purchased and prices are based on the current conversion rate of the Norwegian Krone. In addition up to 1,800 tickets have been made available for members of OGAE, the official Eurovision fan club. Accreditation for members of the press and and fans began on February 8th. UPDATE: For those that haven't booked their flights to Oslo, Norwegian airlines are offering a special promotion. Book by 14th March 2010, and travel between 21 and 31 May, 2010 and you are entitled to a 10% discount by entering the special promotion code "EUROVISION2010".

NRK has yet to announce the presenters of the show but this hasn't stopped the Dagbladet  newspaper from having a poll and the public's choices were the popular male duo Thomas Numme and Harald Rønneberg, while television personality and former model Dorthe Skappel was the favourite female. While NRK has no shortage of experienced and capable presenters, it is believed to be unlikely that NRK will follow Russian Channel 1's example from 2009 and select a different team of presenters for the final and semi-finals.

 

 On December 4th, at the handover of the Eurovision insignia from 20009 hosts Moscow to 2010 host city city Oslo, Norwegian broadcaster NRK revealed the slogan and theme art of the Eurovision Song Contest in Oslo. "Share The Moment" will be the theme of the event.  Television producer Hasse Lindmo provided some clues as to how this slogan will be be used to brand the contest and these suggest public participation and a sense of fun will be keep elements in the event. You can see alternative versions of the theme art on NRK's website.

Accreditation for the 2010 has now begun on the EBU's website and will continue until April 25th.

The "Welcome for the delegations will be held in the iconic Oslo City Hall (right) on the evening of Sunday May 23rd. The construction of this famous building started in 1931, but was paused at the outbreak of World War II, before the official inauguration in 1950. Its characteristic architecture, artworks and the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony makes it one of Oslo's most famous buildings and in In June 2005 it was named Oslo's "Structure of the Century", with 30.4% of the public votes.

The "Euroclub" which will host most of the delegate parties and the other social events will be sited in Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel in the centre of Oslo, which although quite a distance from the Telenor Arena, is served by frequent public transport.

For more information on the delegate hotels and transport, please refer to the EBU's website.

 PARTICIPANTS  We now appear to have a final list of participants for 2010, with 39 countries competing in Oslo. 

 ALBANIA As is traditional, Albania was first country to select their Eurovision entry and unlike other broadcasters, RTSH, expanded its selection. The Festivali i Këngës took place between 24th and 27th December with 36 entries. The winner, chosen by a jury was Juliana Pasha and Nuk Mundem Pa Ty"(I Can't Live Without You). The song will be sung in English in Oslo as "It's All About You".

 ARMENIA ARMTV will be in Oslo, despite their disappointment at the EBU's decision not to enforce stronger sanctions on Azerbaijan following police interference in that country's 2009 televote. Ten acts competed in the national final held on February 14th and the winner was selected by a jury and televote. Eva Rivas and "Apricot Stone" was chosen and all the songs can be heard on AMTV's website.

 AZERBAIJAN Since debuting in 2008, Azerbaijan has had two Top 10 results. Six artists competed in a semi-final held on February 2nd, with three progressing to the final, staged in Baku on March 2nd. After each singer performed a selection of songs, Safura (Safura Alizade) was chosen as the Azeri performer. An internal selection will choose the song and the entry will be announced on March 19th. 

UPDATE  BELARUS Confusion marked the Belarusian selection. A national final was staged in late 2009, but it was then decided to have an internal selection and entrants had to re-submit their songs. On February 25th it was announced that "Far Away" performed by the band 3+2 was the entry. The song had finished second in the original selection. The song has now been remixed for Belarus.

UPDATE  BELGIUM has failed to qualify for the final in the last five years and in 2010  Flemish broadcaster VRT, chooses the entry. With a decline in budgets and local interest, VRT opted for an internal selection and on November 25th, announced that 20 year old Belgian X-Factor finalist Tom Dice would go to Oslo. The song, "My And My Guitar" was chosen internally and presented on March 7th.

 BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA has been in every Eurovision final since 2001 and BHRT has again used an internal selection to choose its entry. On January 11th it was confirmed that 26 year old Vukasin Brajic, the runner-up in the talent show "Operacije Trijumf "(Operation Triumph) would perform "Munja i Grom" (Thunder & Lightning) in Oslo. The song will be unveiled in a special show on March 7th. 

 BULGARIA For the first time, Bulgarian broadcaster BNT has opted for an internal selection to choose its performer. In October it was announced that local star Miroslav Kostadinov, better known as Miro would perform the Bulgarian entry in Oslo. Five potential entries were presented on February 7th and in a special  show on February 28th, the public chose "Angel Si Ti" (You Are An Angel) for Oslo.

 CROATIA Undeterred by not finishing in the Top 10 since 2001, HRT again opted for the same selection process as recent years. A semi-final on March 5th chose eight finalists, which were joined in the final on the following evening, by eight automatic qualifiers. The winner of both the jury vote and the televote was "Lako Je Sve" (Everything Is Easy) performed Feminnem, who represented Bosnia in 2005.

 CYPRUS has not reached the Eurovision final since 2005. CyBC again opted for a national final to choose its song for Oslo. Ten entriess competed for the votes of the public and a jury on February 7th and the clear winner of both votes was the song "Life Looks Better In Spring" sung by Jon Lilygreen & The Islanders.

 DENMARK DR received 562 entries and ten made it to the final staged in Aalborg on February 6th. Six finalists were chosen by a jury and the other four will be established artists, invited by DR. Over three rounds of voting, the song chosen for Oslo was "In A Moment Like This" performed by the duo Chanée and N'Evergreen. The show can still be seen on DR's websiite.

 ESTONIA After finally qualifying for the Eurovision in 2009, it appeared that Estonia may miss out on the 2010 due to financial limitations. However ETV received money from the Foundation for Estonian Enterprise and ten songs will compete for the votes of a jury and the public on March 12th. The only former Eurovision entrants are former members of Vanilla Ninja (Switzerland 2005) and Suntribe (Estonia 2005).

 FINLAND has reached the final for the last four years. Three weekly semi-finals each selected three songs and were joined a "lucky loser" chosen by a jury. The Finnish final was held on January 30th in Tampere and the winner chosen over two rounds of televoting. The group Kuunkuiskaajat and "Työlki Eellää" (You Can Work For A Living), won and the song will stay in Finnish in Oslo.

 FRANCE had its first Top 10 result since 2002 in Moscow and France 3 again used an internal selection to choose the singer for Oslo, After weeks of speculation, It has been confirmed that the entry will be performed by the virtually unknown 21 year old Congolese born singer Jessy Matador. The song "Allez! Ola! Olé!" will also be used to promote French television's coverage of football's World Cup. 

 GEORGIA returns to Eurovision after being forced to withdraw their controversial 2009 entry. On January 16th it was announced that 23 year old singer, songwriter and actress Sofia Nizharadze would go to Oslo. Sofia performed six potential Eurovision entries on February 27th and a jury and televoters selected "Shine" for Oslo. The songs are now available on Georgian TV's website.

 GERMANY has opted for a larger selection for 2010. The German entry will be chosen in Cologne on March 12th and before the final there will be heats, a quarter-final and a semi-final, starting on February 3rd. Stefan Raab will select the 20 acts that will compete, before two eventually reach the final. In that final the song to represent Germany will be chosen, before the winning act is chosen by televoting.

UPDATE GREECE has qualified for every Eurovision final since 2001, winning in 2005. Having opted out from the usual internal selection process, Greek broadcaster ERT has confirmed its intention to be in Oslo and seven different acts will compete for the support of televoters and a jury in a national final to be staged in Athens on March 12th. The songs can now be heard on ERT's website.

 ICELAND having equalled their best Eurovision result in 2009, RUV was one of the first broadcasters to confirm they would be in Oslo. 150 songs were submitted and the entry was chosen in a selection process involving three semi-finals and a final, staged in Reyjkavik. On February 6th the Icelandic public chose "Je Ne Said Quoi" by Hera Bjork for Oslo. You can hear the songs on RUV's website.

UPDATE IRELAND is looking to reverse recent poor results. Almost three hundred songs were submitted and five were selected to compete in "Late Late Show" Eurosong special on March 5th. A national televote and regional juries both chose 1993 Eurovision winner Niamh Kavanagh and "It's For You", to go to Oslo. More information here. 

UPDATE ISRAEL will be represented in Oslo by former talent show runner-up Harel Skaat. Skaat was announced as the 2010 Isreali performer on December 29th. Four songs will compete for the votes of a combination of juries and a public televote. The songs can now be heard on the IBA's website. The final takes place on March 15th, making it one of the last selections of 2010.

 LATVIA LTV confirmed participation on December 15th after extending a Eurovision sponsorship deal. 70 entries were submitted and this year, there were no semi-finals, instead ten songs competed in the final on February 27th with the winner being chosen over two rounds of voting. Aisha and "What For?" will be the Latvian entry in Oslo.

UPDATE LITHUANIA After questions regarding finances were resolved, LRT finally confirmed that there would be a Lithuanian entry in Oslo. Three semi-finals preceded the final, staged on March 4th where twleve songs competed for the votes of the public and a jury. The clear winner was the group InCulto, with the song "Eastern European Funk". 

 (FYR) MACEDONIA MRT expanded its selection, having missed out on the last two Eurovision finals. 28 songs competed in two semi-finals on February 18th and 19th and 16 made the final, held in Skopje on February 20th.A jury and televote combined chose "Jas Ja Imam Silata" (I Have The Strength) by Gjoko Taneski feat. Bili & Pejcin for Oslo. It is unclear if the song will stay in Macedonian in Oslo.

 MALTA PBS received 123 songs and 36 semi-finalists were shown in six showcase shows in December and January. 20 songs, chosen by the public, progressed to the final, staged in Ta' Qali on February 20th. The winner was chosen by a televote and a jury and the clear winner for the ticket to Oslo was 17 year old Thea Garrett and "My Dream"

UPDATE MOLDOVA TRM expanded their Eurovision selection process and this year and two semi-finals preceded the the Moldovan national final, which was staged in Chisinau on March 6th. Fourteen songs competed for the votes of the public televote and a jury and the winner of both votes was "Run Away" performed by The Sun Stroke Project & Olia Tira.

 NETHERLANDS TROS used a casting show to select its performer to sing a song by well known songwriter, Pierre Kartner (aka "Father Abraham"). Kartner had an international hit in 1978 with "The Smurf Song". The selection was staged in Utrecht on February 7th and six acts performed the entry "Ik Ben Verliefd (Sha-la-lie)". After a tie in in the voting, Kartner chose 17 year old Sieneke to go to Oslo.

 NORWAY will host the contest for the third time, having won the 2009 contest.  Four semi-finals, began on January 8th and eight songs made it to the final, staged in Oslo on February 6th. Over two rounds of voting, regional juries and the public chose "My Heart Is Yours" sung by Didrik Solli-Tangen. NRK's website has information and videos from all the shows. 

 POLAND Rumours that Polish broadcaster TVP would not be in Oslo proved to be unfounded and Poland will once again used a national final to select its entry. Ten songs competed for the votes of the public, through a text vote and the clear winner, taking more than twice as many vote as the runner-up, was the bi-lingual song "Legenda" (Legend) performed by Marcin Mrozinski.

UPDATE PORTUGAL Thirty songs competed in an online qualifier in January, with 24 progressing to two semi-finals,staged on March 2nd and 4th. Twelve songs then competed in the final, held in Lisbon on March 6th, with televoting and regional juries picking the entry. Despite only coming fourth in the public vote "Há Dias Assim" (There are Days Like This) sung by Filipa Azevedo goes to Oslo.

UPDATE ROMANIA Romanian broadcaster TVR changed its selection process and the semi-finals were dropped, with only a final remaining. In the final, staged in Bucharest on March 6th, a televote and jury choose the winner from sixteen entries and the winner of both section was "Playing With Fire" performed by Paula Seling & Ovi. The songs can be heard on TVR's website.

UPDATE RUSSIA After hosting one of the most successful Eurovision Song Contests, Russian broadcaster Channel 1 has the job of keeping interest in the event at its current high level. Twenty five songs competed in the national final, staged in Moscow on March 7th, The winner was Peter Nalitch and the song "Lost And Forgotten".

 SERBIA RTS is another broadcaster who have scaled down their selection, due to financial limitations. Well known Serbian songwriter and musician Goran Bregovic, who provided the interval action for the Eurovision final in 2008 will write a selection of three songs by different performers and the public will choose the winner in a special show to be shown on March 13th.

 SLOVAKIA returned to the Eurovision Song Contest in 2009, having missed out on the previous ten years. 60 songs competed in the biggest selection of the year. Six quarter finals were followed by two semi-finals, before 12 songs competed in the final on February 28th. A 50/50 jury/televote mix, chose the winner and in a tie-break, the public vote chose "Horehronie" sung by Kristina, for Oslo.

 SLOVENIA RTVSLO is sending an entry in the Slovene language to Oslo. The song was chosen over two nights on February 20th and 21st. 14 songs competed in the first night's semi-final with seven progressing to join seven automatic finalists on the second night. The winner, chosen by the public, was "Narodnozabavni Rock" (Popular Folk Rock) performed by Ansambel Roka Žlindre & Kalamari.

 SPAIN TVE chose its entry through a selection called "Tu País Te Necesita" (Your Country Needs You). Four weeks of internet voting began on January 13th and the top ten songs competed in the final, staged in Madrid on February 20th. The winner was "Algo Pequeñito" (Something Tiny) sung by Daniel Diges, the favourite of both the public and the jury.  TVEs website has more information.

 SWEDEN Sweden has been in every Eurovision final since 1977 and SVT added a twist to their 2010 selection with a online vote choosing one entry. Four weekly semi-finals began on February 6th, with two songs progressing to the final and two to a "second chance" show. Ten songs compete in the final to be staged in Stockholm on March 13th, with a jury and televote selecting the entry. SVT's website is open.

 SWITZERLAND Despite the fact that the Swiss have seen their last three songs fail to make the final, the 2010 entry has once again be chosen internally. Michael von der Heide will sing "Il Pleut De L'or" (Golden Rain), chosen from 60 submissions to SR. Michael von der Heide has been working in the Swiss music scene since 1996 and presented the song on January 9th on the television show "SwissAward".

UPDATE TURKEY has been in every Eurovision final since 1995 and in recent years TRT opted for an internal selection. The 2010 Turkish representative is the rock/rap band MaNga, who recently won the "Best European Act" at the MTV Awards. The band unveiled their Eurovision song "We Could Be The Same" to the public on March 3rd.

UPDATE UKRAINE has been in the Eurovision final, since débuting in 2003. Channel 1 opted for an internal selection to choose the artist for Oslo. On December 29th, 28 year old Vasiliy Lazarovich was announced as the Ukrainian singer. Lazarovich, a virtual newcomer who will fund the cost of the entry, performed five potential entries on March 6th and a jury and public chose "I Love You" to go to Oslo.

 UNITED KINGDOM The BBC's decision to use famous songwriters Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Diane Warren paid off in 2009, when the U.K. finished in the Top 5. Peter Waterman and Mike Stock,of the Stock-Aitken-Waterman team that wrote and produced a string of hits in the 1980s will write the 2010 song and six acts will compete to perform it. The winning act will be chosen on March 12th.

 NON- PARTICIPANTS

Four countries that competed in Moscow will not be in Oslo. the Czech Republic who made their debut in Helsinki, but had three disappointing have decided to withdraw due to the Czech public's lack of interest in the contest. Hungary has decided to withdraw for financial reasons and Montenegro has made a similar decision. After initially signing up to participate in Oslo, Andorra has now decided not to compete in 2010. Lithuania has officially withdrawn but is still hoping to find the funding to be in Oslo.

None of the countries that have previously entered the contest, will return in Oslo. Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, San Marino and Morocco were not expected to re-join the contest, but there is disappointment that Austria won't return as Austrian broadcaster ORT had previously said it would return if it deemed the new voting system was successful.

There will be no countries making their debut in Oslo. Lebanon which expressed interest in participating in 2005 will not enter while Israel is in the contest, a stance also taken by Syria and the Muslim counties in North Africa. Liechtenstein is hoping to join the EBU within the next few months, but will not be ready to send an entry in 2010. Kazakhstan is not currently a member of the EBU, but this may change in the next couple of years. The status of Kosovo is under review by the United Nations. but if it is accepted as a member of that organisation it is virtually certain that it will also join the E.B.U. and the Eurovision Song Contest.