FREE OR ALMOST FREE, UNCENSORED INTERNET ACCESS FOR THE CUBAN PEOPLE IN THE ISLAND! ANYTHING LESS THANT THAT WILL BE A CAPITULATION TO THE CASTRO OLIGARCHY MAFIA! ENOUGH SAID! THE HILL: Tech eyes Cuban payday - By Julian Hattem Tech companies see a potential windfall in the Obama administration’s decision to ease trade restrictions with Cuba — and they’re racing to cash in. The historic announcement late last year is leading to a rush of business interest to plug the island nation in to the rest of the world. While the landmark change in policy is still in its infancy and companies have a long way to go before they feel comfortable spending millions on new projects, officials are eagerly working the phones to iron out how they might bring the Communist nation into the 21st Century. “You’ve got a greenfield,” said Scott Belcher, the head of the Telecommunications Industry Association. “You can leap over the last five generations of telecommuncations technology and build out a pretty robust system,” he added. “In that sense it’s a wonderful opportunity. It’s the least developed telecommuncations system in the Americas.” Communications technology was one of the few industry sectors that Obama singled out last month for expansion into Cuba, along with a concerted diplomatic push to establish an embassy and roll back legal restrictions between the U.S. and its island neighbor just 90 miles off the coast of Florida. Currently, Cubans’ ability to access the Internet is abysmal. In 2013, just 26 percent of the country used the Internet, according to the International Telecommunications Union, an agency of the United Nations — but most of them could merely access a walled-off network of largely Cuban websites and services. The portion of Cubans who have actual unfettered access to the true, global Internet is estimated to be closer to 5 percent. “Cuba remains one of the most heavily restricted environments for Internet use in the world, and it has been that way for quite some time,” said Laura Reed, a research analyst at Freedom House, a pro-democracy organization. Poor infrastructure keeps the speed for most people’s Internet near dial-up levels, leaving even those with access to the Web unable to take full advantage of it. Access is also prohibitively expensive for many on the poor island nation. A one-hour trip at an Internet café, for instance, can cost an average worker’s salary for the week. It’s worth remembering that Alan Gross — the contractor whose release from Cuban custody in December allowed the two governments to reach a rapprochement — was arrested in Cuba for smuggling in electronics equipment, including equipment to create Wi-Fi hotspots. The Obama administration is trying to change that situation. “I believe in the free flow of information,” Obama said last month, in announcing his new policy. “I’ve authorized increased telecommunications connections between the United States and Cuba. Businesses will be able to sell goods that enable Cubans to communicate with the United States and other countries.” CLICK LINK FOR ENTIRE ARTICLE! thehill/policy/technology/230608-tech-eyes-cuban-payday
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 01:01:14 +0000
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