The shortest way to the Europe from the Caucasus and the Middle East lies on Georgia and because of that the interest of the modern world has increased to the Georgia. Result of a favorable position of the country is the active development of transnational highways uniting two continents. The number of data transmission and internet users increasing day by day. 

 

Rapid expansion of the mobile service has significantly eased the access issue for urban as well as rural areas of Georgia. The growth of the cellular telecommunication segment is one of the highest parameters of the Georgian telecommunication sector.

 

By the end of 2008, there were 618,000 fixed telephone users in Georgia. In urban areas there are 20 telephones per 100 people, and in rural areas there are four telephones per 100 people.

Fiber-optic lines connect the major cities and Georgia and Bulgaria are connected with fiber-optic line between Poti and Varna (Bulgaria).

 

Access to Internet content in Georgia is largely unrestricted as the legal constitutional framework, developed after the 2003 Rose Revolution, established a series of provisions that should, in theory, curtail any attempts by the state to censor the Internet. At the same time, these legal instruments have not been sufficient to prevent limited filtering on corporate and educational networks. 

 

Compared to other countries in the region Georgia has of the most developed regulatory environemnt in Telecommunications, and therefore had been identified to be the country of first polit project.

In 2016, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Georgian National Communications Commission started the implementation of the project "Development of Georgian Communications Sector". The total cost of the project is € 630,000, from which 90% is financed by Slovak government, and 10 percent by Georgian National Communications Commission. This project, that was implemented by "Grant Thornton Advisory", "Analysys Mason" and "Pierstone", includes several directions, namely:

 

• Harmonization of Georgian legislation with European Union legislation;

• Adjustment of access to Next Generation Networks (NGA);

• Development of different priority sectors;

• Market analysis;

• Develop a framework for measures to be taken by the regulatory authority in the conditions of the monopoly;

• Study of radiofrequency spectrum management and distribution practices, elaboration of recommendations / procedures.

 

The main part of the project was implemented in 2017. Namely: to prepare a major package of legislative amendments to bring in conformity with the Directives specified under the Association Agreement; Also, a working version of the package of legislative amendments resulting from new analysis of distribution of market analysis and mergers and regulatory methodology and radiofrequency spectrum was prepared.