Torontokyo controversies

The Canadian children's singing competition show Torontokyo has generated many controversial epiphanies over the years.

Voting controversies
Voting has been one of the biggest sources of controversy with Torontokyo becoming embroiled in numerous controversies in various editions over the voting process and its results.

2003 phone-phreaks' power-voting
Over 500 phone-phreak hackers with power-dialing hardware and software were reported to be able to place as many as 17,500 votes a night from a single phone line with the touch of a button.

2004 phone scam
A phone scam operation based in Etobicoke was discovered, in which people were tricked into believing that viewers could vote for their favorites through a 647 number, rather than the 416 number used on the show. They were then instructed to call a 437 number to vote. This allowed the company to charge callers nationwide from $1.99 to nearly $5.

Overtime broadcast
The 2007 edition went over its scheduled 2-hour time limit and ended at 9:08 that evening. A number of DVR users across the country claimed the recording ended before Guillaume Aliker was announced the winner shortly after the planned end time. The executives at CBLFT-DT apologized, and during the 2009 edition, host Milo Vulcan warned viewers that the show "may run overtime." This caused a number of viewers at home to completely miss the reprise of Léopold Dubois' winning song "Voler haut", which received a standing ovation from the entire audience. "Voler haut" is sung to the tune of "Resonance" by T.M.Revolution.

2003 winner at Ottawa basketball game
Shortly after winning the first edition of the contest, Ernie Auclair was arranged to sing "O Canada" during a basketball game at Ottawa's Corel Centre one week later. It drew criticisms that the producers of Torontokyo were turning a famous sporting event into "one hell of a promotional opportunity". Auclair considered withdrawing from the event, saying that "I shouldn't even be thinking about being forced to sing the [Canadian] national anthem, because that has nothing to do with my Torontokyo victory. If anyone [across Canada and elsewhere] thinks that I'm about to market something, well, that's not what I expect!" and added "I'M NOT DOING IT!!!"

2007 stage invasion during group song
By the beginning of the second verse in the 2007 group song "Believe in Yourself", a little girl from on of the front seats climbed onto the stage to take part in the choreography. The girl's father took her back to her seat just three (3) seconds later.