• by Ian Framson
• Jan 31, 2013
• Cuba, Fibre Optic

Two years after a fiber-optic cable reached Cuba from Venezuela, and at least five months after it was activated, Havana has confirmed the ALBA-1 cable is working but cautioned that doesn't mean residents will have more access to the Internet.

A brief note from ETECSA, the government's telecommunications monopoly, published in Thursday's edition of the Granma newspaper was the first detailed official comment on the underwater cables' operations since it reached the island.

The 1,000-mile cable has been operative since August of 2012, initially carrying voice traffic corresponding to international telephone calls, according to the note by the enterprise, officially known as the Cuban Telecommunications Enterprise S.A.

Until 2013, Cuba's internet was being powered through satellite links which were really out of reach for a great majority of the island's population. 

It's stated that the investments in internal telecommunications infrastructure will continue the goal is to grow the services further to offer it for close to free soon with social aims in mind.

Read the rest of the Fox News article here.