Israel gears up digitally for Eurovision

KAN training social media influencers and developing games and apps for global fans.

By AMY SPIRO
The Eurovision Look-alike game produced by KAN (photo credit: KAN)
The Eurovision Look-alike game produced by KAN
(photo credit: KAN)
Thousands of fans and tourists will be showing up in Tel Aviv this May for the Eurovision Song Contest. But millions more devoted Eurovision fans will be following along from their homes around the world. And KAN, Israel’s public broadcaster, is working to make their experience even more in-depth.
So far, KAN has released several games and apps for Eurovision fans, and is also partnering with Facebook to train social media influencers to share content throughout the week of the Eurovision competition in May.
The public broadcaster announced this week that it will be hosting a training conference a month before Eurovision for a specially selected group of social media aficionados to get them ready for the Eurovision. The group will be taught how to upload digital content from around Tel Aviv, “providing a unique an intimate angle to the Eurovision Song Contest,” KAN said. Selections of that content will be shared on the digital platforms of both KAN and the European Broadcasting Union.
And KAN and its partners have already been working to get Eurovision fans in the mood, with new apps and games designed for the upcoming contest.
Last week, MyHeritage released a Eurovision look-alike site where fans can upload photos to find their Eurovision doppelgangers. Pop in a photo of Gal Gadot, and you get Tamta, this year’s contestant from Cyprus. Upload a picture of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the app suggests Salome – the Spanish winner of the 1969 Eurovision – or Dana – the 1970 winner from Ireland. Try out a photo of legendary Queen frontman Freddie Mercury, and you get this year’s Israeli competitor, Kobi Marimi.

KAN has also released a game titled Douze or Boos, a riff on the iconic douze points – French for 12 – that is the highest score a contestant can receive. In the game, users listen to clips of songs competing in the 2019 Eurovision – without knowing which country they represent. After hearing 20 seconds of each song, you can swipe left or right to pick your favorites, and find out at the end just who they are. KAN said it is planning a second game, which will be released in April, that will allow fans to rank all of their favorites and predict the winner this year, and compare to the choices of other users.
“As the host broadcaster, KAN digital sees the year of Eurovision as an excellent opportunity to launch innovative tools and features that will turn the Eurovision from a beloved television event to an unprecedented digital experience,” said Elad Tena, the vice president of KAN’s digital division. “This serves in addition to our Eurovision social media activity, including creating content around the competition, building a Eurovision website and operating Eurovision platforms for those both in Israel and abroad.”