Cuba USA
While I was on vacation it was widely reported that ETECSA would be providing megabyte (megabit?) per second WiFi Internet access in Santiago de Cuba for $4.50 per hour. ETECSA subsequently issued a clarification, saying they would be providing WiFi access to the Cuban intranet at no cost.
The initial reports were all based on a 3-sentence post on the Web site of the Cuban Journalist's Union.
The rapid spread of this semi-correct story is a product of click-hungry Internet "journalism" -- contrast that with the reporting a few days later by Yosmany Mayeta Labrada on the 14ymedio site. (English translation).
The initial reporting was not only opportunistic -- Cuba has been in the news lately -- it was uncritical. One would expect the Internet Press to recognize that a few WiFi access points with 1 megabyte per second back-haul speed at a cost of $4.50 per hour is neither Big News nor the sign of a major shift in Cuban Internet policy.
This is the same fallacy as in the sad case of Alan Gross. Gross was convicted of bringing equipment into Cuba that, had he succeeded, would have made no significant difference. That project cost the American tax payers millions of dollars and provided the Cuban government with a propaganda "threat" that it has grossly overstated.
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- In A Nation With Nearly No Internet Access, A Little Bit Gets A Lot Of Hype.
In mid June, Cuba announced a plan to provide public access at 35 WiFi hotspots. As we noted, 35 WiFi hotspots is a drop in the bucket for a nation with over 11 million people, yet they have received a lot of press coverage. A Google search found 651...
- Cuban Home Connectivity Prices Leaked (with A Tidbit At The End Of The Post)
Diario de Cuba reported that Etecsa will begin selling home Internet connectivity in September. Prime time prices will be: The night time price (8PM - 7AM) will be 20 CUC for 90 hours, with a charge of 20 convertible centavos per hour after the limit...
- The Internet Is "dumb" And Micro-management Is Dumb
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- Reporting From Inside Cuba
I just had an interesting exchange with "Muchas Gracias" in the comments of this post. In the exchange, he (she?) tells of a 10 kilometer WiFi link he helped build in Havana using fabricated antennae. He also says some people are sharing 56 kbps Internet...
Cuba USA
The Internet press hypes Cuban WiFi access
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| Poster with WiFi announcement at the Technology Center (14ymedio) |
While I was on vacation it was widely reported that ETECSA would be providing megabyte (megabit?) per second WiFi Internet access in Santiago de Cuba for $4.50 per hour. ETECSA subsequently issued a clarification, saying they would be providing WiFi access to the Cuban intranet at no cost.
The initial reports were all based on a 3-sentence post on the Web site of the Cuban Journalist's Union.
The rapid spread of this semi-correct story is a product of click-hungry Internet "journalism" -- contrast that with the reporting a few days later by Yosmany Mayeta Labrada on the 14ymedio site. (English translation).
The initial reporting was not only opportunistic -- Cuba has been in the news lately -- it was uncritical. One would expect the Internet Press to recognize that a few WiFi access points with 1 megabyte per second back-haul speed at a cost of $4.50 per hour is neither Big News nor the sign of a major shift in Cuban Internet policy.
This is the same fallacy as in the sad case of Alan Gross. Gross was convicted of bringing equipment into Cuba that, had he succeeded, would have made no significant difference. That project cost the American tax payers millions of dollars and provided the Cuban government with a propaganda "threat" that it has grossly overstated.
- A Universiy Of Havana Hot Zone?
A Cuban WiFi zone on and around the University of Havana? Alejandro Ramos Encinosa, from the University of Havana, has written a short description of a campus WiFi project that would bring connectivity to the UH campus and nearby neighborhoods. Ramos...
- In A Nation With Nearly No Internet Access, A Little Bit Gets A Lot Of Hype.
In mid June, Cuba announced a plan to provide public access at 35 WiFi hotspots. As we noted, 35 WiFi hotspots is a drop in the bucket for a nation with over 11 million people, yet they have received a lot of press coverage. A Google search found 651...
- Cuban Home Connectivity Prices Leaked (with A Tidbit At The End Of The Post)
Diario de Cuba reported that Etecsa will begin selling home Internet connectivity in September. Prime time prices will be: The night time price (8PM - 7AM) will be 20 CUC for 90 hours, with a charge of 20 convertible centavos per hour after the limit...
- The Internet Is "dumb" And Micro-management Is Dumb
In my report on the state of the Cuban Internet, I characterized the Cuban Web as being stuck in the mid 1990s. I cited quite a bit of evidence for that conclusion -- let me give you one example here. I went to the Web site of the Ministry of Informatics...
- Reporting From Inside Cuba
I just had an interesting exchange with "Muchas Gracias" in the comments of this post. In the exchange, he (she?) tells of a 10 kilometer WiFi link he helped build in Havana using fabricated antennae. He also says some people are sharing 56 kbps Internet...