The Georgian National Communications Commission has fined Mtavari Arkhi for broadcasting political advertising outside the election period, issuing the broadcaster with a GEL 2500 fine for breaking the law and failing to comply with GNCC’s ruling. The case concerns political adverts that were shown on Mtavari Arkhi outside the election period. According to the Georgian legislation, broadcasters can only show such adverts during the election period. Broadcasters must ensure that...

Caucasus Online and Railway Telecom once again failed to comply with GNCC’s instructions, leading to Caucasus Online being issued with a fine of GEL 90,000, while Railway Telecom has been fined GEL 63 930. The case concerns the sale of shares in the aforementioned companies without GNCC’s approval. This was the third time that the Commission instructed the authorised entities to revert their shareholding to the pre-sale status quo, setting a deadline of 22 February. Should the...

Members of the Georgian National Communications Commission have re-elected Kakha Bekauri as chairman. Mr. Bekauri will chair the Commission for the next three years. He was elected unanimously on 3 February 2020. GNCC members approved the results of the vote at today’s meeting. The Parliament of Georgia elected Kakha Bekauri as a member of GNCC for a six-year term on 11 December. Kakha Bekauri has been a member of GNCC since 2014 and has chaired the Commission since 2017.

The Media Academy of the Georgian National Communications Commission hosted a three-day training programme for 11 journalists on the subject of storytelling on social media. Media representatives worked on creating multimedia products using modern technologies and finding effective ways of placing them on social media platforms. As the media environment is evolving fast, social media is changing every day and new technologies are implemented, it is crucial for media representatives to keep up...

The Georgian National Communications Commission issued Media Union Obiektivi with a warning for broadcasting programmes in Russian language, and instructed it to immediately remove the programmes in question from the broadcasting schedule. The case concerns political shows “Kvelas Gasagonad” (‘For Everyone to Hear’) and “Неделя” (‘Week’), which were broadcasted on Obiektivi in Russian language. The programmes in question exceeded the length set by...

The Communications Commission has issued a written warning to Mtavari Arkhi for violating Georgian legislation and demanded immediate demanded immediate removal of political adverts from the broadcasting network outside the election campaign. The case concerns political adverts that have been broadcasted on Mtavari Arkhi from 19 December 2019. According to the Georgian legislation, broadcasters are only allowed to place such adverts during the election period. Broadcasters must ensure that all...

Mediacritic.ge is a new web platform that will offer professional, qualified and unbiased media critique to the public. The purpose of the platform is to enable critical perception of information and the making of sensible and informed choices. The platform was created by the Media Academy of the Communications Commission to help develop media literacy. Mediacritic.ge will act as a guide between the public and the media. At the same time, it will enable professional development of...

The Media Academy of the Communications Commission has invited renowned British expert Frank Williams to Georgia to hold a two-day masterclass for media producers and editors. During the training, Mr. Williams shared his experience with the media representatives and talked about media-related challenges. Frank Williams spent many years working for BBC World Service and Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. He is currently heading the learning centre for media skills development in Prague. During...

The Communications Commission has fined Caucasus Online Ltd. and Railway Telecom Ltd. GEL 30,000 each for selling shares without prior approval from the Commission. On 17 October, the Commission issued the companies with a warning and gave them a deadline until 3 December to revert their shareholdings to the pre-sale status quo and present a confirmation document to the Commission. However, the companies have failed to comply with this ruling. According to the Law of Georgia on Electronic...

The Parliament of Georgia has re-elected Kakha Bekauri as member of the Communications Commission by a majority vote. Mr. Bekauri will serve a second membership term of six years. Kakha Bekauri’s first term as member of the Communications Commission is due to expire on 24 January 2020. Mr. Bekauri has been a member of the Commission since 2014, and has been chairing it since 2017. The parliamentary decree regarding Kakha Bekauri’s appointment as member of the Commission will come...