Cuba is one of the countries with the lowest internet access. But now, thanks to the relationships with the US, it will be easier for the island to develop and improve communications.

New public wifi hotspots in Havana

By the end of July, in fact, the national telco company ETECSA, will activate 35 public wifi hotspots. Five of them will be opened in Havana.

The goal is to extend internet usage to the entire island by 2020.

Right now the cost to the internet access is pretty high but the fee will be halved from 4.50 CUC to 2 CUC per hour. The only places available today to connect are the hotels where most of the time you have to pay around 10 CUC per hour.

The new wifi hotspots will be able to hold about 50/100 connections at the same time.

A new deal

According to New York Times:

“Ted Henken, a professor at Baruch College in New York who has studied social media and the Internet in Cuba, said the decision could mark a “turning point.”

“Their model was, ‘Nobody gets Internet,’ ” he said in a telephone interview. “Now their model is, ‘We’re going to bring prices down and expand access, but we are going to do it as a sovereign decision and at our own speed.’ ”

Government said that internet connection and communication development will be a main goal for Cuba.

Finally the island will no longer be so isolated 🙂