Google has supplied equipment for the
studio of Cuban artist Alexis Leiva Machado (kown as "Kcho") in
barrio Romerillo, in Havana. The facility is reported to have a
70mps link and supports free access for about 40 users, although
users report spotty actual access. Kcho is well connected to the
Cuban government and reputedly is paying the $US 900/mo access
cost, this in a country where the average salary is about
$20/month, and paid access is $2/hour. This is probably more a
symbolic effort than a real opening in Cuba for either Cuban
access or Google's presence. The Cuban phone company roll out of
hotspots in community locations, and an eventual reduction in
access costs are where change will take place. The University of
Havana wi-fi effort is intended to extend (paid) access to the
neighborhoods surrounding the multiple UofH campuses in Havana. It
is hard to tell when cell and internet access will be open to
competition as in Myanmar, since that is where access will explode
and costs will fall.
Sam L.
On 30/03/2016 10:29 AM, Joly MacFie wrote:
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type="cite">
Yesterday I
browsed a
bunch of YouTube vids of the Stones concert in Havana.
Plenty of smartphones in evidence.