Own Eurovision Song Contest 44

Own Eurovision Song Contest 44, often referred to as OESC #44, is the 44th edition of the Own Eurovision Song Contest. It will take place in Milan, Italy, following Italy's victory at the 43rd Contest with "No Hero", performed by Elisa. This will be the first time the competition will take place in Italy. The contest is scheduled to consist of one quarter-final, two semi-finals and a final. On April 15, 2016 it was revealed that the Mediolanum Forum Arena will be the venue of the 44th edition.

Forty-nine countries have confirmed their participation in this edition. The contest will see the return of Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco and Russia. Belarus, Georgia, Malta, Scotland and Slovakia have decided to withdraw. Following the high number of countries that wishes to compete in the 44th edition, a Quarter Finals Round will be held in which the bottom five entries from each of the two semifinals from the 43rd edition will compete, in order to qualify for the semifinals.

The 44th edition marks Uzbekistan's last participation in the Own Eurovision Song Contest.

After a tense voting process, Poland won the contest for the fourth time, with Margaret's song "No Hero".

Bidding Phase
RAI announced the conditions under which cities and venues had announced their interest in hosting the 44th contest:


 * The host city had to provide a certain number of hotels and hotel rooms to be found in the vicinity of the stadium.
 * The arena had to be able to offer lodges adjacent to the stadium.
 * A press centre had to be available at the stadium that will have a specific size.
 * RAI had to have access to the host venue at least 4–6 weeks before the broadcasts, in order to build the stage, rigging lights and all the technology.
 * The host city had to be close to a major airport.

The following cities are interested in hosting the 44th contest

Country and Host city
Italy (Italian: Italia [iˈtaːlja]), officially the Italian Republic (Italian: Repubblica Italiana), is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 (116,347 sq mi) and has a largely temperate seasonal climate; due to its shape, it is often referred to in Italy as lo Stivale (the Boot). With 61 million inhabitants, it is the 4th most populous EU member state. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino and Vatican City.

Since classical times, Greeks, Etruscans and Celts have inhabited the south, centre and north of the Italian Peninsula respectively. The Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually spread throughout Italy, assimilating and conquering other nearby civilizations and forming the Roman Republic. Rome ultimately emerged as the dominant power, conquering much of the ancient world and becoming the leading cultural, political, and religious centre of Western civilisation. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the global distribution of civilian law, Republican governments, Christianity and the latin script.

During the Dark Ages, Italy suffered sociopolitical collapse amid calamitous barbarian invasions, but by the 11th century, numerous rival city-states and maritime republics rose to great prosperity through shipping, commerce, and banking, and even laid the groundwork for capitalism. These independent city-states and regional republics, acting as Europe's main port of entry for Asian and Near Eastern imported goods, often enjoyed a greater degree of democracy in comparison to the monarchies and feudal states found throughout Europe at the time, though much of central Italy remained under the control of the theocratic Papal States, while Southern Italy remained largely feudal, partially as a result of a succession of Byzantine, Arab, Norman, Spanish, and Bourbon conquests of the region.

During the Renaissance, a period of renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration and art, Italy and the rest of Europe entered the modern era. The Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists, and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. Italian explorers such as Marco Polo, Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci, and Giovanni da Verrazzano discovered new routes to the Far East and the New World, helping to usher in the European Age of Discovery. Nevertheless, Italy's importance as a commercial and political power significantly waned with the opening of trade routes from the New World, as New World imports and trade routes became more influential in Europe and bypassed the East Asian and Mediterranean trade routes that the Italian city-states had dominated. Furthermore, the Italian city-states constantly engaged one another in bloody warfare, with this tension and violent rivalry culminating in the Italian Wars of the 15th and 16th centuries, a series of wars and foreign invasions that left the Italian states vulnerable to annexation by neighboring European powers. Italy would remain politically fragmented and fall prey to occupation, colonization, conquest, and general foreign domination by European powers such as France, Spain, and later Austria, subsequently entering a long period of decline.

By the mid-19th century, a rising movement in support of Italian nationalism and Italian independence from foreign control lead to a period of revolutionary political upheaval known as the Risorgimento, which sought to bring about a rebirth of Italian cultural and economic prominence by liberating and consolidating the Italian peninsula and insular Italy into an independent and unified nation-state. After various unsuccessful attempts, the Italian Wars of Independence, the Expedition of the Thousand and the capture of Rome resulted in the eventual unification of the country, now a great power after centuries of foreign domination and political division. From the late 19th century to the early 20th century, the new Kingdom of Italy rapidly industrialized, especially in the so-called Industrial Triangle of Milan, Turin and Genoa in the North, and soon acquired a colonial empire. However, the southern areas of the country remained largely excluded from industrialization, fueling a large and influential diaspora. Despite being one of the main victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil, leading the way to the rise of a Fascist dictatorship in 1922. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in military defeat, economic destruction and civil war. In the years that followed, Italy abolished the Italian monarchy, reinstated democracy, and enjoyed a prolonged economic boom, thus becoming one of the world's most developed nations.

Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and the eighth largest economy in the world. It has a very high level of human development and enjoys the highest life expectancy in the EU. Italy plays a prominent role in regional and global military, cultural and diplomatic affairs. Italy is a founding and leading member of the European Union and the member of numerous international institutions, including the UN, NATO, the OECD, the OSCE, the WTO, the G7/G8, G20, the Union for the Mediterranean, the Council of Europe, Uniting for Consensus, and many more. As a reflection of its vast cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is one of the most visited countries.

The host of the 44th edition was decided to be Milan. This will be the first time the contest will take place in Italy. Milan (English /mᵻˈlæn/ or US /mᵻˈlɑːn/; Italian: Milano [miˈlaːno] ; Lombard, Milanese variant: Milan [miˈlã]) is the second-most populous city in Italy and the capital of Lombardy. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area (the 5th-largest in the EU) comprises an estimated 5 million people (former Provinces of Milan and Monza-Brianza, with other Comuni included in the former Province of Varese). Greater Milan is a polycentric area of 7 to 10 million people, stretching over the provinces of Milan, Bergamo, Como, Lecco, Lodi, Monza and Brianza, Pavia, Varese and Novara. The Milan metropolitan region is part of the so-called Blue Banana, the area of Europe with the highest population and industrial density. In terms of GDP, Milan has the third largest economy among EU cities (after London and Paris) and the largest among European non-capital cities.

Milan is the main industrial, commercial, and financial centre of Italy and a leading global city. Its business district hosts the Borsa Italiana (Italy's main stock exchange) and the headquarters of the largest national banks and companies. The city is a major world fashion and design capital. Milan's museums, theatres and landmarks (including the Milan Cathedral, the fifth-largest cathedral in the world, and Santa Maria delle Grazie, decorated with Leonardo da Vinci paintings such as The Last Supper, a UNESCO World Heritage Site) attract over 8 million visitors annually. The city hosts numerous cultural institutions and universities, with 185,000 enrolled students in 2011, i.e. 11 percent of the national total. The city is also well known for several international events and fairs, including Milan Fashion Week and the Milan Furniture Fair, the largest of its kind in the world, and is the host for the second time of a Universal Exposition, the Expo 2015. Milan is home to two of the world's major football teams, A.C. Milan and Inter Milan.

Venue
The Mediolanum Forum (formerly known as FilaForum di Assago, DatchForum di Assago and Forum di Assago) is an indoor sports arena that is located in Assago, near Milan, Italy. The arena has a seating capacity of 12,500 for basketball and is primarily used for ice hockey, basketball, and tennis. It also hosts live concerts.

The Forum received the European Prize for Architecture for sports venues awarded by CONI and the Council of Europe. It is also one of two facilities in Italy, along with Palalottomatica in Rome, to be part of the European Arenas Association network.

The Forum is the home floor of the Italian League professional basketball team EA7 Emporio Armani Milano.

The arena opened in 1990. Since then, it has hosted several important sports and musical events. Among them, the 1994 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships, the 2003 IIHF Continental Cup Superfinal of ice hockey (Together with Lugano's Pista Resega), the WWE RAW and SmackDown! in 2007, and the 2009 World Amateur Boxing Championships.

In January 2009, the arena changed its name to the current name of Mediolanum Forum, replacing the old name of Datch Forum.

Since 2011, the Forum has also been home to La Grande Sfida, the annual tennis exhibition event played every Christmas. The arena also hosted the 2014 edition of the Euroleague Final Four.

Semi-final Allocation Draw
The semifinal allocation draw took place on April 15, 2016.

The participating countries, excluding the automatic finalists (host Italy and the Big Five), and the quarter-finalists, will be split into six pots, based on voting patterns from the previous ten editions. The pots were calculated and are as follows:

Running Order
(Coming soon)

Participants
(Coming soon)

Returning artists
(Coming soon)

Quarter-final

 * 6 countries will participate in the quarter-final.
 * The three countries in the quarter-final with the highest scoring points, according to the votes from each voting country, qualifies for the Semifinals.

First semifinal

 * 20 countries will take part in the first semi-final, including two qualifiers from the quarter-final.
 * Czech Republic, Italy and Ukraine will vote in this semi-final.
 * The ten countries in this semi-final with the highest scoring points, according to the votes from each voting country, qualifies for the Grand Final.

Second semifinal

 * 20 countries will take part in the second semi-final, including one qualifier from the quarter-final.
 * Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Norway will vote in this semi-final.
 * The ten countries in this semi-final with the highest scoring points, according to the votes from each voting country, qualifies for the Grand Final.

Finalists
The twenty-six finalists are:
 * the Big 6 countries.
 * the top ten countries from the first semi-final.
 * the top ten countries from the second semi-final.

Voting and spokespersons

 * 1) Flag of Germany.png Barbara Schöneberger
 * 2) Flag of Lithuania.png Ugnė Galadauskaitė
 * 3) Flag of Moldova.png Lidia Isac
 * 4) Flag of Turkey.png Burak Çelik
 * 5) Flag of Austria.png Money Boy
 * 6) Flag of Israel.png Adi Ulmansky
 * 7) Flag of Greece.png Dimitris Alexandrou
 * 8) Flag of Cyprus.png Nearchos & Charis
 * 9) Flag of Denmark.png Ida Corr
 * 10) Flag of Spain.png Cristina Castaño
 * 11) Flag of Switzerland.png Cécile Bähler
 * 12) Flag of Armenia.png Iveta Mukuchyan
 * 13) Flag of Estonia.png Stig Rästa
 * 14) Flag of Bulgaria.png Evgeniya Radilova
 * 15) Flag of Russia.png Dmitry Shepelev
 * 16) Flag of Ireland.png Ronan Keating
 * 17) Flag of Portugal.png Vitória Guerra
 * 18) Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.png Goran Bregović
 * 19) Flag of Azerbaijan.png Dilara Kazimova
 * 20) Flag of Lebanon.png Rita Hayek
 * 21) Flag of Wales.png Catherine Zeta-Jones
 * 22) Flag of Faroe Islands.png Eivør Pálsdóttir
 * 23) Flag of Finland.png Mikko Leppilampi
 * 24) Flag of Poland.png Michał Szpak
 * 25) Flag of Montenegro.png Dado Polumenta
 * 26) Flag of Sweden.png Gina Dirawi
 * 27) Flag of Belgium.png Emma Bale
 * 28) Flag of Albania.png Elhaida Dani
 * 29) Flag of Czech Republic.png Gabriela Gunčíková
 * 30) Flag of Serbia.png Vukasin
 * 31) Flag of Morocco.png Saad Lamjarred
 * 32) Flag of France.png Amir Haddad
 * 33) Flag of Ukraine.png Verka Serduchka
 * 34) Flag of Netherlands.png Manuel Broekman
 * 35) Flag of Norway.png Astrid S
 * 36) Flag of England.png Joe & Jake
 * 37) Flag of Hungary.png Freddie
 * 38) Flag of Kazakhstan.png Regina Vandysheva
 * 39) Flag of Kosovo.png Era Istrefi
 * 40) Flag of Macedonia.png Daniel Kajmakoski
 * 41) Flag of Iceland.png Greta Salóme
 * 42) Flag of Italy.png Chiara Grispo
 * 43) Flag of Egypt.png Donia Samir Ghanem
 * 44) Flag of Romania.png Lariss
 * 45) Flag of Algeria.png Kenza Farah
 * 46) Flag of Slovenia.png Marjetka Vovk
 * 47) Flag of Northern Ireland.png Nadine Coyle
 * 48) Flag of Croatia.png Severina
 * 49) Flag of Uzbekistan.png Rayhon
 * 50) Flag of Earth.png Rest of the World

Official Album
Own Eurovision Song Contest: Milan 44 is the official compilation album of the 44th Contest, put together by the Own Eurovision Song Contest. The album will feature all 49 songs that will enter in the 44th contest, including the quarter-finalists and the semi-finalists that failed to qualify in the next stage of the competition.

The album was released on April 24, 2016.

First CD
The first CD contains 24 songs.

Second CD
The second CD contains the last 25 songs of the album.

Other countries

 * The country withdrew due to their bad result in the last edition and to avoid the quarter-final.
 * Although the country was supposed to perform in the first semi-final, it was later eliminated for not submitting entry before deadline.
 * LTV have stated they have no interested in returning to the contest. A return to 45th edition is highly, likely with a new format.
 * The country withdraws due to change in the management. A return will more likely happen next edition.
 * The country dramatically withdraws due to lack of interest.
 * The country confirmed it participation in the quarter-final, but was later eliminated for not submitting entry before deadline.