Iceland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan. The Icelandic entry was selected through Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2012, a national selection organised by the Icelandic broadcaster RÚV. Greta Salóme & Jónsi represented Iceland with the song "Never Forget", which qualified from the first semi-final and went on to place 20th in the final, scoring 46 points.
Before Eurovision
Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2012
A total of 15 acts will compete in Söngvakeppni 2012. Each semifinal will feature five entries. Two of them will go through the final by televoting. Therefore, the viewers will select six finalists. In addition to the qualifiers, a jury had the option to select an additional wildcard qualifier from the remaining songs in the semi-finals to proceed to the final.
Competing entries
The submissions period was open until 10 October 2011. Both native Icelandic citizens and people legally residing in the country before 1 October 2010 can apply. Icelandic composers are allowed to collaborate with composers residing abroad and each composer may enter a maximum of three songs. All entries shall be performed entirely in Icelandic. On 12 October 2011, RÚV announced that 150 entries had been submitted. The songs to make it to the televised phase of the Icelandic selection will be selected by an internal committee. The identity of the authors will remain secret to avoid biased decisions. The names of the participants in the selection will be announced at a press conference by RÚV.
Shows
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 14 January 2012 where five of the competing acts performed. The top two entries decided by televoting advanced to the final.
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 14 January 2012 where five of the competing acts performed. The top two entries decided by televoting advanced to the final.
Semi-final 3
The third semi-final took place on 28 January 2012 where five of the competing acts performed. The top two entries decided by televoting advanced to the final.
Final
The final took place on 11 February 2012 with the 6 qualifiers from the semi-finals, and a wildcard entry selected by the producers competing. The winner was determined by the votes from a jury panel and public televoting.
At Eurovision
During the Semi-Final Allocation draw which was held on 25 January 2012, it was announced Iceland were scheduled to compete in the first half of the first semi-final on 22 May. On 20 March 2012 the Running Order draw was held, which determined the order of which the participants performed. Iceland is set to perform 2nd in the first semi-final. After qualifying from the first semi-final, Iceland drew to perform 7th in the final. They came 20th with a total of 46 points.
Split results
In the Semi-final 1 Iceland came 8th with 75 points: the public awarded Iceland 8th place with 79 points and the jury awarded 11th place with 70 points.
In the Final Iceland came 20th with 46 points: the public awarded Iceland 19th place with 39 points and the jury awarded 19th place with 53 points.
