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Today, Netflix announced that they would that their online video streaming service would now be available for $7.99 a month in Cuba. Access to the service requires an international payment method and internet access. Netflix has now become the first U.S based company to enter the Cuban market following the relaxed trade restrictions following talks with Cuba and the United States.
The two major barriers that render this extension of Netflix’s online subscriptions to Cuban residents a gesture of economic diplomacy are the cost of a Netflix subscription and the limited access to internet for the Cuban population. Netflix’s expansion of service to Cuba reflects the company’s plan of global conquest to provide streaming services in every country by 2016.
First, the $7.99 USD subscription fee is equivalent to almost one-fourth of the average salary in Cuba which is 471 pesos or $20 a month according to the National Statistics and Information Office. Cubanet reported that home internet connections were prohibited for most Cubans and the charges in government run internet cafes to browse the web were extremely high. The CIA World Factbook records that the ownership of computer by private citizens is illegal. From a financial standpoint, the returns from Netflix’s decision to extend operations to Cuba seem minimal as most citizens face economic barriers to online activity. These barriers are rooted in a significant lack of disposable income for a product that would consume one-fourth of a monthly salary for average Cubans and the significant cost to access an internet connection.
Secondly, most Cubans do not have immediate access to an internet connection, especially not connections that are free or inexpensive. Around 27% (3,090,796) of Cubans have access to internet according to the International Telecommunication Union. Currently, there are 5,360 broadband internet subscribers in the country. Additionally, the average browser loading time for desktops in Cuba is 59.2 seconds in comparison to 5.7 seconds in the United States. Connectivity in the government run internet cafes are extremely slow and as previously mentioned, very costly.
According to the CIA, the Cuban government owns and controls all broadcast media in the country including radio and television. Netflix announced that they were not working with the Cuban government in the selection of content for Cuban subscribers, but clients would have access to a “curated” selection presumably with similar programming found for other Latin American countries with Netflix.
The decision to expand Netflix’s streaming operations to include Cuba is figurative and allows Netflix to become the FIRST in different avenues in the avenues of Cuba/U.S trade are slowly opened. This story was largely reported on non-Cuban news outlets. The only Cuban affiliated news outlet that reported Netflix’s service announcement was Cubanet which operates in Florida with submissions from Cuban journalists. Granma, ACN, and other Cuban news sources did not report this story.
http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users-by-country/
http://www.eltiempo.com/entretenimiento/cine-y-tv/netflix-en-cuba/15220395
https://pr.netflix.com/WebClient/getNewsSummary.do?newsId=1896
http://www.cubanet.org/noticias/netlix-comienza-a-ofrecer-su-servicio-en-cuba/
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