Internet
access in Cuba is complicated by weak infrastructure and tight
government control. While recent years have seen an expansion in the
number of internet and mobile phone users, the ICT sector remains
dominated by government firms. Restrictions on private enterprise were
eased under the 2012 update of Cuba’s economic model. Although proposed
reforms did not initially extend to liberalization of the communications
sector,
[4]
in November 2013, ETECSA, Cuba’s state-run telecommunications company,
announced that it will allow private workers to market local and
long-distance telephone services to the population as self-employed
communications agents. The agents may also sell prepaid cards for fixed
and mobile telephony and internet access.
[5] In January 2014, ETECSA also announced it will allow balance transfers on cards between prepaid users.
[6]
The possibility of self-employment marks a significant shift in
Cuba’s economic policy, as it affords more control to the citizenry and
advances the government’s recent trend of loosening restrictions on
Cuban nationals. Although the Cuban government began to allow the
limited creation of private cooperatives by computer science graduates
in 2012, tight internet restrictions, along with prohibitively high
computer and software pricing, resulted in a nonexistent official
market. While a black market for such commodities does exist, Cuban ICT
liberalization was mostly rhetoric prior to the late 2013 announcement
allowing private workers to serve as self-employed communications
agents.
[7]
According to the National Statistics Office, there were 2.6 million
internet users in Cuba in 2011, representing 23.2 percent of the
population.
[8]
The latest data from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
places Cuba’s internet penetration at 25.71 percent as of 2013—an
increase of less than one percent since 2012, when penetration was
measured at 25.64 percent.
[9]
The vast majority of users cannot access the global internet, but are
instead relegated to a tightly controlled government-filtered intranet,
which consists of a national email system, a Cuban encyclopedia, a pool
of educational materials and open-access journals, Cuban websites, and
foreign websites that are supportive of the Cuban government.
[10]
Experts estimate that approximately 5 percent of Cubans periodically
have access to the World Wide Web via government institutions, foreign
embassies, and black market sales of minutes by those permitted to have
such accounts.
[11]
Although Cuba still has the lowest mobile phone penetration rate in
Latin America, the number is rising due in part to changes in
government-imposed restrictions on telecommunications. According to a
study from the ITU, in 2009, 620,000 Cubans owned mobile phones. By the
end of 2013, this figure had ballooned to nearly 2 million, or about 18
percent of the population.
[12]
As the number of mobile phone users has grown, ETECSA has begun
implementing small changes beneficial to users. Between 2011 and 2012,
the government reduced the sign-up fee for mobile service by over 50
percent—although at a cost of US$60 it still represents three months’
wages for an average worker. Receiving phone calls from within Cuba is
now free, the cost of text messages sent within the country has been
reduced from US$0.16 to $0.09, and daytime cellphone rates have been cut
from US$0.60 to $0.35 per minute.
[13]
Despite these positive developments, the cost of mobile service is
still too high for the vast majority of Cubans. The government’s
undeclared policy—viewed as an attempt to attract new funds in hard
currency—is predicated on convincing Cuban exiles to pay for these
services for their relatives in Cuba. As of January 2014, friends and
relatives living abroad were able to use an internet service to pay the
phone bills of users living on the island.
Cuba has roaming agreements with 365 carriers in 143 countries.
[14] The island’s mobile network reportedly covers 75 percent of Cuban territory, with further expansions planned.
[15]
Most mobile phones do not include internet connections, but it is
possible to send and receive international text messages and images with
certain phones. Phones that utilize Global Positioning System (GPS)
technology or satellite connections, however, are explicitly prohibited
by Cuban customs regulations.
[16]
Additional restrictions are placed on modems, wireless faxes, and
satellite dishes, which require special permits from the MIC in order to
enter the country.
[17]
In 2000, the Ministry of Informatics and Communication (MIC) was
created to serve as the regulatory authority for the internet. Within
the MIC, the Cuban Supervision and Control Agency oversees the
development of internet-related technologies.
[18]
Despite the 2013 connection of a high-speed undersea cable known as
ALBA-1, there is still no broadband service on the island, and the
limited number of Cubans with internet access face extremely slow
connections, making the use of multimedia applications nearly
impossible. Despite the high hopes associated with ALBA-1, Cuba’s
penetration rate has barely grown since 2012.
[19]
It is worth noting that the most significant jump in internet access
appears to have occurred between 2011 and 2012—prior to the connection
of the high-speed cable—when reported internet penetration rates jumped
from 16 percent to nearly 26 percent.
[20]
According to statistical findings from Google Analytics, Cuba has the
slowest connection speed in the Western Hemisphere and is among the
worst in the world.
[21]
Access over the intranet is similarly slow due to weak domestic
infrastructure and the limited extension of access to Cuba’s new
high-speed cable.
The Cuban government continues to blame the U.S. embargo for the
country’s connectivity problems, saying it must use a slow, costly
satellite connection system and may only buy limited space. President
Barack Obama eased some aspects of Washington’s prolonged trade
sanctions in 2009, however, allowing U.S. telecommunications firms to
enter into roaming agreements with Cuban providers and to establish
fiber-optic cable and satellite telecommunication facilities linking the
United States and Cuba.
[22]
Official media ignored this important change in the U.S. legal
framework, and Cuban leaders reiterated their demand for a complete end
to the embargo.
The bilateral relationship was also affected by a 2009 incident that
directly touched on the lack of open internet access in Cuba. On
December 4, 2009, Cuban authorities arrested Alan Gross, an American
independent contractor who was in the country to set up individual
satellite-based internet connections as part of a U.S. government–funded
project. In March 2011, Gross was sentenced to 15 years in prison for
committing an act “against the independence or territorial integrity of
the state.”
[23]
Despite a handful of serious health concerns and a self-imposed hunger
strike in April 2014, Gross continues to serve the remainder of his
sentence in a Cuban prison.
[24]
The volatile relationship between Cuba and the United States took
another hit in April 2014, when information was leaked regarding a USAID
program to improve connectivity and communications in Cuba. Reports
surfaced that the U.S. development agency had created a “Cuban Twitter,”
known as ZunZuneo, which attracted some 40,000 subscribers before it
was shut down in 2012. News of the program, which the U.S. government
has called “secret” but not “covert,” and which was ultimately
ineffective given Cuba’s many obstacles to access, has strained
Cuban-U.S. relations further, and has given the Cuban government
ammunition in its quest to label independent bloggers on the island as
“U.S.-funded mercenaries.”
[25]
In February 2011, Cuban officials celebrated the installation of a
1,600 km undersea fiber-optic cable laid between Cuba and Venezuela at a
cost of approximately US$72 million.
[26]
The eagerly anticipated cable, known as ALBA-1, was expected to
increase data-transmission speeds 3,000 fold, yet no news from the
authorities was provided for nearly two years.
[27]
Due to the prolonged silence, rumors began to spread that Cuban
authorities were reluctant to extend access to the general population
for fear of enabling a “Cuban Spring.”
[28]
In late January 2013, ETECSA announced that the cable had been
connected, but noted that opening of the line would be gradual
(predictably limited to select government offices at first) and that
infrastructure would still be enhanced in order to facilitate widespread
use of the new technology.
[29]
In June 2013, citizens were able to access the internet through
connections to the new fiber-optic cable in government-run “navigation
halls” (see below).
Prohibitively high costs also place internet access beyond the reach
of most of the population. A simple computer with a monitor averages
around US$722 in retail outlets, and at least US$550 on the black
market.
[30] By comparison, the average monthly Cuban salary is approximately US$20.
[31] Even an internet connection in a hotel costs between US$6-$12 per hour.
[32]
Only 31 percent of Cubans report having access to a computer, the
distribution of which is run by the state-owned Copextel Corporation. Of
those with access, 85 percent noted that the computers were located at
work or school.
[33]
In June 2013, Cuban authorities opened 121 government-run internet
access points, or “navigation halls,” with 444 computers, marking a
small step toward greater connectivity in a country with one of the
lowest percentages of internet penetration in the Western hemisphere.
According to Cuba’s official newspaper,
Gaceta Oficial, members
of the public are now able to access national websites for US$0.60 per
hour and international sites for US$4.50 per hour—a significant
reduction from the previous rate of $6 per hour, but still prohibitive
compared to an average monthly salary of US$20. The cost for checking
email will remain unchanged at US$1.50 per hour. Users have been
pleasantly surprised by the relatively high connection speed (for
Cuba)—up to 2 Mbps—as well as access to some web pages once blocked by
the government. However, sites such as Radio/TV Marti, the U.S.
government broadcaster that transmits to the island, remain blocked.
By paying for government-run internet service directly at cybercafes
or purchasing a “Nauta” card (a pass that links to ETECSA’s interface of
the same name and can only be used at specific locations), users will
be able to access temporary accounts, valid for 30 calendar days as of
the date of the first session. They will also be able to open permanent
accounts upon request, complete with username, password, and email
address, if they can afford the cost of the service—and the high level
of surveillance associated with such accounts.
Despite the improvements in options for access and the reduction of
fees, web use at “cyber points” and “navigation halls” remains tightly
controlled. A recent decree from the Ministry of Communications
reaffirmed the government’s continued monitoring of internet traffic,
stating that ETECSA will “immediately” end a user’s access if he or she
commits “any violation of the norms of ethical behavior promoted by the
Cuban state.” Users must show their national ID cards and sign an
agreement stating that they will not use the service for anything “that
could be considered …damaging or harmful to public security”—a vague
term that could presumably extend to political dissidence.
If users attempt to send email with attachments, ETECSA’s own NAUTA
interface system greets them with a pop-up window reminding them that
“other people may see what you are sending” and asking if they wish to
continue. Although the pop-up window is marked “Internet Explorer” and
appears to be a real message generated by the search engine, several
Cuban cybernauts have said that they had never seen such a message when
using internet cafes in Havana’s tourist hotels. Such claims suggest
that ETECSA may have programmed computers at its new access points to
prompt users as a reminder that the government is monitoring their
online activities.
There are only two ISPs in Cuba: CENIAI Internet and ENET (ETECSA).
Both are owned by the state, though Telecom Italia previously held
shares of ETECSA. In February 2011, the state-owned company Rafin S.A., a
financial firm known for its connections to the military, bought
Telecom Italia’s 27 percent stake for US$706 million.
[34]
As a result, the telecom company is now completely owned by six Cuban
state entities. Cubacel, a subsidiary of ETECSA, is the only mobile
phone carrier in Cuba.
The Cuban government continues to control the legal and institutional
structures that determine who has access to the internet and how much
access will be permitted.
[35]
This regulation extends to the sale and distribution of
internet-related equipment. In early 2008, after a nearly decade-long
ban, the government began allowing Cubans to buy personal computers.
Cuban officials, doctors, or trusted journalists and intellectuals can
now legally connect to an ISP with a government permit. Approved access
to the internet, which is typically restricted to email and sites
related to one’s occupation, is granted to doctors, professors, and
government officials, whose offices are linked by an online network
called Infomed. Home connections are not yet allowed for the vast
majority of Cubans.
The government claims that all schools have computer labs, but in
practice, internet access is usually prohibited for students or limited
to very short periods of access, certain email accounts, or supervised
activities on the national intranet. Students at the Latin American
School of Medicine in Havana, for example, are reportedly granted only
40 minutes per week of internet access, rendering online research or
accessing academic journals infeasible.
[36]
Students of journalism at Havana University are granted up to 40 MB of
data access per month as part of the “Hypermedia Journalism” course.
[37]
Despite the many barriers, Cubans still find ways of connecting to
the internet through both authorized and unauthorized points of access.
Some are able to break through infrastructural blockages by building
their own antennas, using illegal dial-up connections, or developing
blogs on foreign platforms. The underground economy of internet access
also includes account sharing, in which authorized users sell access to
those without an official account for one or two convertible pesos (CUC)
per hour. Some foreign embassies allow Cubans to use their facilities,
but a number of people who have visited embassies for this purpose have
reported police harassment. There is also a thriving improvisational
system of “sneakernets,” in which USB flash drives and data discs are
used to distribute materials (articles, prohibited photos, satirical
cartoons, video clips) that have been downloaded from the internet or
stolen from government offices.
At times of heightened political sensitivity, the government has used
its complete control of the cell phone network to selectively obstruct
citizens’ communications. During a March 2012 visit to the island by
Pope Benedict XVI and the January 2014 Community of Latin American and
Caribbean States (CELAC summit) in Havana, bloggers and dissidents
reported that their cell phones were not working.
[38]
One independent journalist who investigated the situation found that
calls were being automatically redirected to a phone number belonging to
the Ministry of Interior.
[39]
All calls from dissidents’ cell phones are monitored and the service is
cut regularly to those working as freelance journalists or voicing
views the government does not condone via citizen journalism. Such was
the case in early summer 2014 for three independent reporters working
for the news site
Hablemos Press. Having identified the media
outlet as a threat, ETECSA reportedly disconnected the cellphones of at
least three of its writers, each of whom was also detained for between
24 and 96 hours.
[40]
The Cuban government zealously pursues those who violate
telecommunications access laws, and government technicians routinely
“sniff” neighborhoods with their handheld devices in search of ham
radios and satellite dishes. In December 2012, the official newspaper
Granma explicitly warned against “counterrevolutionary” and subversive use of illegal nets.
[41] In an extensive report entitled “Violations of the Cuban Telecommunications System,”
Granma
detailed the criminal investigation of two highly profitable
cyber-networks illegally using ETECSA’s fixed and mobile market
channels. The investigation is still in progress, but the information
provided by the MIC and the attorney general alleges that the illegal
networks began operating in 2009 and were responsible for a loss of
revenue for ETECSA totaling US$3 million. The defendants, who are being
prosecuted for illegal economic activity and fraud, face fines coupled
with sentences of three to ten years in prison.
In January 2014, the Cuban government announced a handful of changes
in international policy and even hinted at the potential easing of
telecommunications restrictions. A new port was constructed with a
US$957 million investment from Brazil to facilitate international trade;
[42]
discussions over ending the U.S. embargo on Cuba also heated up in
early 2014; and Havana played host to the CELAC summit, which convened
the leaders of Latin American and Caribbean states in order to encourage
dialogue and establish shared goals for the region.
Although details about changes to telecommunications policy were
vague and did not include information regarding pricing or technology,
representatives announced two exciting possibilities for Cubans over the
upcoming year—mobile internet connections and home internet access.
Experts speculate that access will extend only to the government run
intranet and “Nauta” email accounts. Since December 2013, ETECSA has
also been working on “opening” Cuban cellphones—which will likely need
to support data services (GPRS) if they are to be used for internet
activities. If enacted, such a policy shift could have a significant
impact on Cuban citizens’ mobile and internet connectivity.
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