The Court of Arbitration in Paris scheduled for March 22 the next phase in procedures to review the French Eutelsat company's decision to stop broadcasting the Georgian Russian-language First Caucasian television channel.
The sides will submit their final arguments today.
Public Television of Georgia filed a lawsuit against Eutelsat, demanding compensation for illegally ceasing to broadcast the channel. The company claims that the operator stopped broadcasts under pressure from Russia, which leases most of the satellite's channels.
The lawsuit was considered at a hearing in early February, but the decision was taken by another judge. The court found the main problem to be the contract on providing services. According to the Georgian side, the contract is still valid. The French side disputes these claims.
A letter from 76 journalists criticizing the decision to curtail the broadcasting of First Caucasus was published in the French newspaper Liberation. The authors blamed Eutelsat for not complying with an agreement to broadcast television via the W7 satellite.
