The web-platform of the Media Academy of the Communications Commission mediacritic.ge, which was established to promote media literacy and enable informed choices, has been accessed by over one million users on social media. This underlines the relevance of the platform and the high level of public interest towards qualified media critique.  There were 59 analytical articles, 63 blogs and 178 reviews published on www.mediacritic.ge in 2020. The website had 300,000 unique visitors...

http://www.sheamotsme.ge – the innovative service introduced by the Communications Commission in 2020 to protect the interests of consumers, has been named as the best example for the development of internet freedom and quality. The platform was included in the report of the influential international organization Freedom House as an exemplary tool for protecting consumer rights. Freedom House highlighted the importance of the consumer-oriented platform and presented Georgia in the report...

According to the 2020 annual report of the Communications Commission, the number of mobile internet users is very high (94 %) in relation to the population of Georgia. Mobile internet traffic increased by a record level in 2020. Mobile subscribers used 197 million gigabytes of internet, aided by the growth in the number of mobile internet subscribers and new generation of phones on the market. Increased internet demand during the pandemic and the development of the 4G network and services have...

The use of fixed broadband internet services in Georgia is growing both in terms of subscriber numbers and revenues.  The number of fixed broadband internet service subscribers reached 998,000 in 2020, up by 57,000 (6.1%) since 2019. As in the previous year, the number of subscribers grew faster in the regions. The broadband service market in Tbilisi is almost completely saturated, while the number of subscribers in cities and villages in the regions is growing significantly, especially in...

According to the annual report of the Communications Commission, telecom operators collected total revenues of GEL 1.153 billion in 2020, down from 1.185 billion in 2019. Thus, the revenues of telecom operators decreased by GEL 32 million in 2020.  Revenues from retail services totaled GEL 961 million in 2020. This includes revenues from fixed internet, as well as mobile, roaming and fixed phone services and broadcast transit.   Retail revenues of mobile operators amounted to GEL...

Mobile service market penetration in Georgia remains high, amounting to 148% in 2020. The number of mobile subscribers was 5.1 million at the end of 2020. These figures indicate that customers have more than one mobile phone number in their possession, meaning that people are aware of the market service rates and use different networks for different services based on their needs. The share of subscribers per company was as follows: MagtiCom – 41%, Silknet – 33%, and Beeline –...

The Communications Commission has published its 2020 Annual Report, which provides an overview of the projects implemented last year, as well as the challenges and plans for 2021.  The report states that against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic, the communications sector assumed an even more important role in 2020. As nearly all services switched to the online mode, the Georgian telecommunications sector managed to successfully respond to new challenges, for which it received...

The Communications Commission has once again ruled that Caucasus Online violated the legislation. The company has been instructed to return 100% of its shares to the pre-sale status quo within three months.  On 22 March, the Commission found out that following the  previous violation of the legislation by selling 49% of company shares, Caucasus Online unlawfully sold the remaining 51% without approval of the Commissionto Weco Investments and Finance S.A. – a subsidiary of...

In the first quarter of 2021, total advertising revenues of television broadcasters increased by 3% compared to the same period of 2020 and amounted to GEL 14.5 million, whereby direct advertising and sponsorship account for GEL 13.2 million. TV Pirveli, Silknet, Formula, POSTV, GDS TV and RBG recorded increase in total advertising revenues, while the advertising revenues of Teleimedi, Rustavi 2, Mtavari Arkhi and the Georgian Public Broadcaster decreased.  Advertising revenues by channels...

The pilot project of the State Internetization Programme has been inaugurated inOzurgeti Municipality. The project, which will enable up to 29,000 people to access high-speed broadband internet, was officially launched today by the prime minister of Georgia Irakli Gharibashvili. The event was attended by Commissioner Natia Kukuladze, Minister of the Economy Natia Turnava, Minister of Education and Science Mikheil Chkhenkeli, iDrector of Open Net Mariam Sulaberidze, and Regional Director of...