One of the most expensive Internet accesses that Etecsa sells is the mobile data route. (Photo: Cuban newspaper)
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Almost 8 million Cubans connected to the Internet through the only provider of this service in Cuba: Etecsa, during last January, according to a report prepared by specialized agencies We Are Social y Hootsuite, the latter the most widely used platform internationally for network management.
According to the published data, exactly 7 million 700 thousand residents in Cuba were connected to the Internet during the 31 days of January, a figure that means 68% of the Cuban population.
A comparison with the same period in 2020 shows that a total of 600,000 Cubans joined the network, which means that the Internet penetration rate increased by 5%.
It is important to note that, despite the high prices of Internet connection, that 68% of Cubans connected to the Internet is higher than the world average of 59.5%, although in developed and developing nationals it is much higher than the Cuban statistics .
One of the most expensive Internet accesses that Etecsa sells is the mobile data route. However, the state-owned company said that so far in 2021 there have been more than 4 million 530 thousand users who have activated mobile data plans.
The We Are Social and Hootsuite report also reveals that in January 2021 there were 6.28 million social media users in Cuba. The number of users is equivalent to 55.5% of the population residing on the Island.
What do Cubans think about Internet access?
After knowing the report on Internet access in Cuba, which could be described as successful compared to what existed on the island 5 years ago, many are the Cubans who still do not agree with Etecsa, which maintains the monopoly of telecommunications on the island .
“Although we have come a long way, we still have a long way to go. I aspire to one day being able to connect without a firewall and have several applications connected to the internet, watch some interesting video from the largest academic network that exists and download some good tutorials, all without thinking that my package is going to run out, “wrote the user Karen on the official website Cubadebate which boasts of being the most visited news website in Cuba.
“For now I only buy the 1gb one and save it using only messaging with WhatsApp and Messenger, and trying to get a combo in your shipment in case one day I get lucky,” says another citizen who alludes to the government practice of selling commodities in online stores.
For his part, Alex Coper warns that “ETECSA’s prices to access the internet are very high, something that I do not understand being a unique company in a socialist country with a communist party, they should have very cheap prices, mainly in mobile data. I think that all people should have quality internet for free or very cheap, similar to today’s radio and television.
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