Asian Idol Voting FAQs

source: http://www.theasianidol.tv/

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Has this show been done before?
A: No this is the first ever Asian Idol. There was a World Idol back in 2003 but it has not been repeated.

Q: Why do it?
A: This would be the first large scale, multi-country talent type show for Asia.
Internationally, whilst Europe has its Eurovision Song Contest which enables 25 countries to vote on their favourite song and performers from across Europe, Asia has not yet run a large scale, multi country talent type show. Asian Idol is a contest that raises the profile of the Idols involved and the countries that support them. To compete on behalf of your country to become Asian Idol increases the national interest on the outcome.
Viewers and contestants in every Idol country have always asked how to take the Idol format to the next stage.

Q: Is Asian Idol the same format as regular Idol?
A: The creative format of the show is similar, with 5 participants contesting against each other on December 15 in Indonesia to determine the winner, on the basis of votes received.
However, some elements had to be adjusted given that Asian Idols is a regional vote-based show, and vote bases are different according to the population of participating countries.
Hence, a special 'two choices' algorithm has been devised to enable combination voting to produce the ultimate winner in a fair and equal manner using a system based on tried and tested vote system called proportional representation or PR.

Q: So how is it fair when all the countries have vastly different population sizes?
A: Population size is removed as a determining factor by making the total vote generated a percentage -- and not a figure that just adds up individual votes. Any one country can only deliver a vote count valued at 100% -- whether it has 4 million people or 1 billion people.

Q: Why do voters have to vote for 2 contestants?
This algorithm has been put in place to take into account any potential national bias, emanating from viewers who only wish to vote for their home Idol. Hence, to be fair to all contestants, 2 choices must be made.

Q: What happens if people only vote for one Idol?
A: This would not be a valid vote. To make it absolutely fair, viewers must always vote for two Idols. The end result then factors the National and International votes to derive the ultimate winner overall.

Q: Why aren't the votes given different weighting or preferences instead?
A: The Equal and Even Cumulative voting method has been found to work on numerous levels of fairness, whilst being the easiest ballot format for mass voting. .

Q: So will there be two winners?
A: Each Idol that has made it to this contest is a winner! However, there can only be one Asian Idol. The final result will poll the two best choices and divide the votes by country in an even manner. A draw is a statistical possibly but highly unlikely.

Q: Why do vote prices differ per country?
A: Vote prices are determined by past local Idols vote charges and by prevailing market rates, which differ from country to country.