This article is part of a partnership with OC Media. You can read the original in English here.
Georgian television channel Formula has decided to cancel its morning live broadcasts and cut some of its staff. The channel’s management stated that the decision was driven by serious financial difficulties, which they blamed on the authorities. At the same time, the broadcaster emphasized that these measures, while painful, are necessary to keep the media outlet running.
Misha Mshvildadze, the director and majority shareholder of Formula, announced the changes on the evening of 5 July. According to him, the new broadcasting structure was a response to the financial difficulties the channel faced “due to the stance of the authorities.”
“With these changes, we want to prevent a much more serious crisis—a situation where we cannot meet our current obligations and are ultimately forced to close down. We must not let this happen,” Mshvildadze said.
He expressed hope that this “painful path” would allow the television channel to enter a new phase of stability.
On Monday, Formula host Irakli Kiknavelidze began hosting a new daytime program, “Hello Georgia.” It replaced the morning show “Wake Up, Georgia,” which previously aired at 09:00.
According to the new schedule, the channel’s live broadcasts now begin three hours later: first, the daytime news bulletin airs, followed by Kiknavelidze’s program.
“Due to a serious financial crisis, we have decided to cut airtime, thereby reducing expenses and, unfortunately, parting ways with some of our staff,” the host announced on air.
He also spoke about how the financial problems have affected the channel’s employees:
“We have been working without salaries for many months now. We have been experiencing financial instability for several years. It has been a long time since Formula employees knew what it means to receive their salaries in full and on time.”
Kiknavelidze noted that many “dream of the closure” of the television channel, but this will not happen. According to him, Formula’s employees do not work for material gain, but for a certain idea.
He also spoke of growing state pressure on forces critical of the government, including political parties and civil society. According to him, “Formula and the Georgian media are on the front lines of the struggle for democracy in Georgia.”
Later, in an interview with OC Media, Kiknavelidze said that the channel’s financial crisis was linked both to restrictive laws passed by the ruling Georgian Dream party that affected international funding, and to the actions of the authorities, who, he said, directly or indirectly prevent advertising on the channel.
“Over the last year to a year and a half, our ratings have been growing, but advertising revenues have not increased. Moreover, it is fair to say that very few companies are willing to advertise with us,” he noted.
He identified the activities of the Communications Commission of Georgia as another tool of pressure. Formula was one of two opposition-leaning TV channels recently fined by the commission for alleged violations of broadcasting regulations in news programs.
According to Kiknavelidze, despite the restrictions, Formula “very often” ranks second in popularity among viewers after the largest pro-government channel, Imedi, or third after TV Pirveli, which is also considered opposition-leaning.
“It is rare for [pro-government channel] Rustavi 2 to overtake us. In fact, the opposite is usually true—we show better results, even though they have massive funding,” he stated.
Formula TV was founded in 2019 by a group of employees who left the then-opposition Rustavi 2 channel after the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled to return its ownership to a former owner. Following this, Rustavi 2’s editorial policy gradually became more supportive of the government.
Initially, the main shareholder of Formula was David Kezerashvili, a businessman and media mogul who served as Georgia’s Minister of Defense in 2006–2008 under the United National Movement (UNM) government.
In 2023, Kezerashvili announced that he was transferring half of his controlling stake in Formula to the company’s staff, and in 2025, he completely relinquished his shares in the channel.
In addition to its financial problems, Formula has also faced a criminal investigation following a complaint by pro-government director Gogi Khaindrava. He accused the television channel of “false reporting” over one of its reports. Formula has denied these allegations.