One month ago Romanian broadcaster TVR faced sudden withdrawal from European Broadcasting Union member services after the broadcaster had accumulated 16 million Swiss franc of debt over almost a decade. And now it looks like Bosnia and Herzegovina’s broadcaster BHRT may face the same fate, with the broadcaster owing the EBU six million Swiss francs.

BHRT reports that the EBU has given the broadcaster until the end of May to settle part of their debt, and expects further repayment to be made in monthly instalments.

If BHRT does not meet the repayment schedule, the EBU is threatening to withdrawal its member services. For BHRT, the big threat is not having rights to broadcast the upcoming Euro 2016. But it would also include news services, Champions League matches, other football matches involving Bosnia and Herzegovina.

And, of course, it would mean that Bosnia and Herzegovina would not be able to broadcast or participate in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has taken a break from Eurovision from 2013 to 2015, but returned with the supergroup of Dalal & Deen feat. Ana Rucner & Jala and their dramatic song “Ljubav je”. The entry didn’t cost the public broadcaster anything — it was privately funded by commercial sponsors and the artists themselves.

As we saw in Stockholm, Bosnia and Herzegovina has a lot of talent on offer. They’ve been participating in Eurovision since 1993 and we aren’t ready to see them leave again.

Dalal & Deen feat. Ana Rucner & Jala – “Ljubav je” (second rehearsal)

Deen – “In The Disco” (live at #Wiwijam)

What do think of this situation? Is the EBU right to call in the debt? Should BHRT pay up?

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dee
dee
7 years ago

Best Sarajevo places

Zanderzion
Zanderzion
7 years ago

come on EBU post publicly all the countries financial status and lets see as I believe not only Romania and Bosnia & Herzegovina got debts to pay. Stop the the threat just kick-out all the countries with debts and we’ll know how many will remains capable of joining the contest that turning crap every year. You did giving us hint of inviting China, USA etc., an obvious hint that EBU is greed for money.

karminowe.usta
karminowe.usta
7 years ago

Bosnia and Herzegovina should pay but payment should be in few rates. This country is poor but should respect rules.

Tony KuKo
7 years ago

LOL, none of these countries are paying their fees. I wonder how Spain and Italy don’t have any debts since they actually have huge public debts.

ESCaddict
ESCaddict
7 years ago

EBU don’t want to boot anyone out but they have to pay their own bills too. EBU have been asking Romania to pay up for years & Romania’s debt kept growing. Enough, they were cut off. B&H are heading the same way but EBU are still hopeful B&H will pay up. Again, EBU are being helpful. They are already giving B&H credit but that will run out too.
I guess the kids making stupid comments on this page just don’t understand.

Denis
Denis
7 years ago

No Bosnia isn’t loved more than Romania. It’s debt is less severe than the Romanian one, so Bosnia might still pay it off. At least according to EBU Romania had debts going back to 2007, it was beyond rescue. Though I am surprised BHRT managed to come this far with the amount of debts and corruption they have. Also EBU isn’t Eurovision. Eurovision is a different part of EBU. But the EBU brand is much more than that. It’s everything from sports to political debates. To talk about ESC slogans and all that is just silly since it’s got nothing… Read more »

Ben Rafter
Ben Rafter
7 years ago

It’s official: Bosnia is loved more than Romania by the EBU.

Pollaski 3: Rise of the Machines
Pollaski 3: Rise of the Machines
7 years ago

First of all, for those of you who are all “but why does the EBU need this money if they’re nonprofit”- maybe because it probably is EXPENSIVE to operate a continent-wide (and then some!) broadcasting network? And that nonprofit doesn’t mean free services? Seriously, welcome to reality. Just did a quick look- Romania’s going to get Euro 2016 anyways, considering ProTV is the listed broadcaster. B&H only has BHRT as theirs, so if the EBU cuts them off, they’re screwed. At least they don’t have a team in Euro, unlike Romania. My inner-capitalist can only smirk and shake its head… Read more »

Dan
Dan
7 years ago

I find it funny how people take the ESC slogans so seriously. They’re a load of nonsense most of the time anyway, and they’re the same almost every year.

Even then ESC isn’t the only thing the EBU does so the slogan isn’t meant to be some sort of EBU constitution lol.

Bozo Vreco
Bozo Vreco
7 years ago

Kad Srbi dobiju svoju televiziju u Hrvatskoj, onda mogu i Hrvati svoju u Bosni, Denise, nabijem te na kurac ustasho

AberSam
AberSam
7 years ago

Of course we’re going to be picking up on these things moe often since Romania got kicked out. To those of you saying Bosnia and preferred to Romania, Bosnia has 10 million Francs less to pay… So it wont be as strict. Also we do have to take into account Bosnia’s recent history and it is a state riddled with problems, tv licenceing being just a small issue in Bosnia. We must understand the societal problems within Bosnia rather than just viewing things from a “Eurovison orientated” lense. @oooops: the Eurovision has nothing to do with the inner workings of… Read more »

Briekimchi
Briekimchi
7 years ago

Is it a coincidence that the EBU has started calling in debts that were a decade in the making just after Australia joined the contest?

Azaad
Azaad
7 years ago

clearly some finances are whack….I’m surprised that Greece haven’t been guilty (so far) of accumulating such mounting debt considering that the Romanian and Bosnian economies seem to be at least properly functioning.

On the subject of Bosnia, the debt is a lot smaller, and so it’s more likely they can pay it off in time to participate in 2017. Hopefully because I always like their entries. Of course, not qualifying for the first time would sting and deter future participation, but considering they were one spot away from the final they might still participate.

oooops
oooops
7 years ago

I thought even when Romania was forcely withdrawn that the contest was a joke, an irony, a double moral… But I did still watch to see my favourite Estonia fall in the contest to 42nd overall.

But I now force EBU to make a new rule. NO SLOGANS, they just make this contest a big joke. And I do not want to laugh

The Brightest Falling Star
The Brightest Falling Star
7 years ago

@Light Star

A piece of advice if you don’t want your comments to be deleted: you can include your opinion in one comment instead of posting many consecutive comments 🙂

Mario = Legend
Mario = Legend
7 years ago

Sadly this is the world. But where is all this money? Maybe EBU should think before letting country like Bosnia and Romania sing at the contest because year on year debt get worse and now it is just even harder for them to pay. It is their fault partly and now here they just throw them out? Unfair. We all see over the past few years how EBU likes to break and bend own rules. I can not take such an organisations seriously. So many problems and this is just the start of the list. Who even knows if Bosnia… Read more »

Vogzal Odessa
Vogzal Odessa
7 years ago

Light Star, things are never as simple as they appear on the surface, and so is not the reason and the nature of corruption in the Balkans 🙂 The first Bosnian artist ever to have competed at ESC is a somewhat forgotten crooner from Sarajevo, Mr Sabahudin Kurt. He competed for Yugoslavia back in 1964, gaining Yugoslavia their first ‘nil’ points with “Zivot je sklopio krug” (The circle of life has come to an end). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2LN97egauU Bosnian contributions prior to their first act as an independent state in 1993 include: 1965 Vice Vukov “Ceznja” (Longing) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciuR6APZfTc 1973 Zdravko Colic “Gori… Read more »

oooops
oooops
7 years ago

Or wait, MGP Nordic and Russia

Vogzal Odessa
Vogzal Odessa
7 years ago

The very last “Jugovizija”, the yugoslav national final gathering all the six composing republics of socialist Yugoslavia, was held in early March 1991 in studios “A” and “B” of what was then called “Televizija Sarajevo” and is nowadays refered to as “BHRT”. The winner was a songstress from Belgrade, Serbia, named Baby Doll with the title “Brazil”. Here’s the performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPvKr4s2TAY

oooops
oooops
7 years ago

fikri, Lol, we will soon rename ESC to MGP Nordic

Denis
Denis
7 years ago

Not really a surprise. BHRT is near collapse and has been so for a couple of years. No one pays the TV-licence, meaning they don’t have enough money to buy anything. And the Bosnian-Croats refuse to pay since they want their own channel, which they of course won’t get.
And then of course there’s the regular issue with corruption and money not going where they should.
I am actually surprised they lasted this long.

They could of course broadcast ESC and European Cup but it would have to be EBU broadcast. And that probably costs more.

Yonatan
Yonatan
7 years ago

@Darren –
They’d be able to broadcast it, but they won’t be able to use the EBU broadcast. They’d have to make their own.

MaNickname
MaNickname
7 years ago

This seriously shows the EBU’s favouritism. It clearly prefers BiH to Romania; they disqualified Romania a month before the contest but it’s ok for BiH when th y also have debt?
With all these negative things coming from the EBU, and recent JESC rule changes (as seen with Slovenia) the end of Eurovision is nigh:
It’s one minute to midnight for ESC!

fikri
fikri
7 years ago

lol goodbye the balkan bloc and hello scandinavia! <3

Darren
Darren
7 years ago

Another debt ridden EBU member??? Where is all this money going, or not going in this case, if the EBU is a not-for-profit organisation?
At least they didn’t leave it until April 2017, when Bosnia-Herzegovina had already chosen their entry.
Would they really be stopped from watching Euro 2016? Because here in Ireland, it is being shown on TV3, and they are not members of the EBU.

oooops
oooops
7 years ago

At least they may do that after, and not before contest. Why wouldn’t they do the same with Romania? Ovidiu deserved at least a shoutout from the hosts. Loads of love to Ovidiu, and fight for the truth