Netflix Comes to Cuba, but…
HAVANA TIMES — Netflix, one of the main platforms for film and television on the Internet, announced Monday that its services are available now in Cuba. However since the connection is very limited or null for most of the population, the only ones who can see the movies are a select group very close to the government who have unlimited access to broadband.
The US Company announced its products will be available to view online without downloading at from US $7.99 per month, reported dpa news.
Netflix justified its decision to “improved access to Internet [in Cuba] and increasingly more (international) credit and debit cards.”
One of the most successful series of Netflix’s is the “House of Cards”, centered on the intrigues of Washington politics.
Cuba and the United States announced in December last year the restoration of diplomatic relations after more than half a century of ideological confrontation.
“We are delighted to finally be able to offer Netflix to the people of Cuba, connecting them with stories they will love from all over the world,” Netflix co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings said in a statement.
“Cuba has great filmmakers and a robust arts culture and one day we hope to be able to bring their work to our global audience of over 57 million members,” he added.
Netflix revolutionized the use of film and television films and series to offer online viewing without the need to download and through the payment of a monthly subscription in recent years. The content is always available.
Gradually it has expanded its range of its own productions, and other large companies like HBO and Amazon have imitated the model and already offer similar services in “streaming”.
Netflix began offering its services in 2011 in Latin America, where it claims to have more than five million subscribers.
I repeat what I stated before, change, regardless of which side does or does not want in Cuba will grow and in my opinion exponentially. Netflix is a major part of this and watching movies, especially ones that are radical vs. what the ordinary Cuban is able to view, is extraordinary. The numbers thrown around by most usually hits the 5% mark so let it increase as time goes by and we’ll be exporting
some pretty interesting “hits”! In any case I’m all for this and there’s more to come.
Walk down any street in Cuba and you’ll see people outside visiting and “talking” to each other. The streets in my city, here in the US, are deserted much of the time because many are sitting inside their homes numbing their minds with the Netflix umbilical cord attached to their foreheads.
Excellent point.
Netflix is not stupid. How many times did this announcement get their name in the news? This was a great PR move. And, at only the cost of preparing and distributing a press release.
And 99% of Americans are thinking they must be a progressive company boldly forging ahead into new international markets.
Didn’t their stock price get a small bump up from this announcement?
It’s been 56 years Terry. Its hard to be patient when you have ‘skin in the game’ as I do.
I beg to differ… it’s a new beginning, like so many other celebrated new beginnings in Cuba. Everything has a beginning, and each new change will always lead to another. Try celebrating the little things, Moses…eventually the sum total will spell real progress for Cuba. It’s still going to take a few years. Patience, my son.
HT readers, at least the overwhelming majority, are not stupid. Netflix offering services to present-day Cuba is meaningless. To fully appreciate Netflix offerings, one must have access to a computer, high-speed internet connection and have a bank credit card with Visa, MasterCard, PayPal or other internationally-recognized credit services. I would wager that there are less than 100,000 customers in Cuba who meet this criteria. Much ado about nothing.