First Regional Tier-1 PoP to Be Launched in Tbilisi

TI Sparkle, the International Services arm of Telecom Italia Group, announced the expansion of its Global IP Backbone with a new IP Point of Presence (PoP) in Tbilisi, Georgia. This strategic development is also in accordance with Georgia’s main ISP Silknet’s vision of improving broadband internet access in the region. The memorandum of cooperation between TI Sparkle, ISP Silknet and Turkcell Superonline was signed on November 17.

Located in a carrier neutral Data Center, this new point of presence will represent the first Tier-1 PoP in the Caucasus Region and will address the increasing demand for a Tier-1 IP Transit service not only from under-served Caucasus and Caspian Regions but also from Middle East and Central Asia through Silknet’s and Turkcell Superonline’s fiber networks connecting the Tbilisi PoP to TI Sparkle’s IP Global backbone ‘Seabone.’

“I would like to note that this project is important not only for Tbilisi but also the regions as it means the provision of high quality services from TI Sparkle and parterres,” said Paolo Ficini, representative of Telecom IT Sparkle. “Our company is focused on the East. We already have a large and reliable partner in Turkey and we are pleased that on the other side of the border we have met another reliable partner. Silknet is one of the leaders on the Georgian market, and we believe that it has all the potential to give the project a regional scale,” he added.

The Tbilisi PoP is the result of a trilateral partnership between Global Service Provider TI Sparkle, Georgia’s main ISP Silknet and Turkey’s leading Network Provider Turkcell Superonline. Once launched, the new PoP will be interconnected to TI Sparkle’s Seabone Global IP backbone through Istanbul and Frankfurt via diversified terrestrial routes and will transform Tbilisi into a regional telecommunications hub by ensuring full redundancy.

“It is important to choose the right partners in our project. The status and power of our partners gives us the confidence to talk about its success. We chose Silknet because it has a very open policy. In this case, our project has a regional character, which indicates the openness to other countries as well,” said Emre Erdern, representative of Turkcell Superonline.

The new Tbilisi PoP will meet the demand of major ISPs, fixed and mobile operators, content and CDN players, increasing TI Sparkle’s Global IP Backbone capillarity in Eastern Europe. The Tbilisi PoP will further improve the performance of TI Sparkle’s Global IP Transit Service Seabone offered to ISPs, OTTs, Content and Service providers in the region, and at the same time will offer an overall better Internet experience.

Eka Karsaulidze