US Blocks Google Analytics in Cuba
HAVANA TIMES — The Cuban media have denounced the blocking from users on the island of the Internet application Google Analytics, which is a powerful statistics service for websites and blogs.
According to the Cubadebate website, when one attempts to access the service here in Cuba, a message is received referring to the US Treasury Department’s efforts to enforce sanctions established by the US “trade embargo” against the island.
In this way, Google Analytics has been added to those free tools and applications that Google denies potential Cuban users – a list that includes Google Earth, Google Desktop Search, Google Toolbar and Google Code Search.
While I think the embargo is stupid and counter-productive, I thought telecommunications and IT related items used in non-military applications were exempt. I’m no expert in how Google might be able to disable a piece of their software. But the free version is so ubiquitous (can be downloaded from third party sites located outside the US or is embedded in third party software) it is hard to imagine this ban accomplishing anything other than handing a cheap propaganda victory to the Castro regime.
Why is this news and why does it surprise anyone? Google is an American company. There is a longstanding law(Trading with the Enemy Act) in the US prohibiting US companies from doing business in Cuba. Were Google or any other US business to continue to do business with Cuba, in clear violation of US law, without a government response, now that would be news. Besides, the counting algorithms that support the software behind theGoogle analytics application are basic programming exercises. If I were the Minister of Information and Communication in Cuba, I would have built my own app to do the counting a long time ago anyway. And Google Earth? Pleeeease, you need bandwith that Cuba does not have to effectively use the satellite images produced by this application. No real loss for Cuba. Google Code Search is a developers tool app to more easily access open source code tools. Here’s a hint: it’s free and available on the internet, hence OPEN SOURCE. You don’t need Google Search to use open source code. Here is the truth, something often lacking on both sides of this crazy relationship. This whole Google controversy is much ado about nothing.