The Isle of MTV hit summer music event will be staged in Malta for the next three years, starting this summer, after the government yesterday signed an agreement with the organisers.
"Our calendar of events, already brimming with world class happenings, just got richer," Tourism Minister Francis Zammit Dimech said shortly before signing the three-year agreement with MTV Networks International representatives Kevin Razvi and Richard Godfrey.
The deal builds on the success of the Isle of MTV concert staged at the Granaries in Floriana last summer where international artistes Akon, Maroon 5 and Enrique Iglesias topped the line-up for the concert that attracted an estimated 50,000 people.
"The fusion of Malta and MTV produced an incredible feeling for the thousands who attended last year. We want to share this magic with more visitors. Our invitation goes out to all music and party lovers: Come join us in Malta in June when MTV comes to town," Dr Zammit Dimech said.
By virtue of the agreement signed yesterday, the summer musical event will be hosted in Malta in June this year as well as in 2009 and 2010.
This year's event will take place over four days to include club nights in Malta and Gozo, a beach party and the actual concert.
The talent line-up for this summer's edition, that will be free to the public, will be announced in the coming weeks, Mr Godfrey said adding that record labels were being approached.
Speaking about last summer's event, Mr Godfrey commented about the enthusiasm of the crowd: "When artistes get the sort of reaction they got here they get blown away," he said.
His colleague, Mr Razvi, said that last year "everyone was taken aback by the scale of the event" and was most impressed by "the enthusiasm of the local partners and the people of Malta".
The Isle of MTV did not usually go back to a venue as it liked to move on. However, they believed that Malta was an ideal venue to showcase international artistes to a vast audience.
"We're delighted to renew our cooperation for Isle of MTV. The Malta Tourism Authority is looking to reach a very specific youth and music audience. They've chosen MTV because our brand resonates so powerfully with our audience. Our brand helps shift perception," he said.
The Isle of MTV concert, to be produced by Playmaker, will be supported by year-round marketing activities. A microsite will host content and two competitions running before and after the show.
In addition, MTV will run complementary competition and promotional tune-in spots to drive anticipation and awareness of the event and the show across the network. The concert, a mixture of live performance, artiste interviews and location settings, will be edited into a 60-minute special to transmit across 20 European MTV channels.
Over the past years the Isle of MTV locations included Torre de Belém in Lisbon, Portugal; Ile du Gaou in Six-Fours Les Plages, France; Tossa De Mar in Costa Brava, Spain; and Piazza dell Unità d'Italia in Trieste, Italy.
www.isleofmtv.com