EuroWire March 2016

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† As the result of progress on 4G and fewer spectrum
auctions, operators’ cash ow will get a boost from
continued operating-cost cuts and a lower capital spending
requirement. The carriers that have advanced furthest –
switching their subscribers to xed-mobile converged
subscriptions and taking the lead in network deployment –
may gain an advantage in cash generation.
† Integrated carriers’ xed-to-mobile bundled services in
Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium are proving an e ective
way to reduce customer churn, prompting cable and mobile
operators to complement their services.
So far, demand has been stimulated by discounts on
bundled services, o setting some of the churn-reduction
bene ts. As the market matures, regulators may intervene
to ease switching over from one operator to another. Pay-TV
content and broadband speed will be key to in uencing the
customer’s decision among the bundles on o er.
It’s o cial: although the US economic
embargo of Cuba remains in place,
telecoms may set up shop there
The US Federal Communications Commission has given up its
active discouragement of business dealings with Cuba, the last
country on the FCC “Exclusion List.”
On 15th January the agency announced it would henceforth
allow American companies to provide telecommunications
services to the island nation 90 miles from Key West, Florida,
without having rst to secure FCC approval.
“Removing Cuba from the Exclusion List bene ts the public
interest as it will likely alleviate administrative and cost burdens,”
on both the FCC and the telecoms, the agency said – adding
that this would also promote competition among carriers
interested in the Cuban market. By all metrics that market is
a plum ripe for the picking by providers of wireless phone and
Internet services.
According to an analysis by Freedom House, the published
statistic that ve per cent to 26 per cent of Cubans have Internet
access must be understood in light of their government’s
de nition of “access.”
In June 2013 Cuba’s new high-speed Internet was ostensibly
opened to citizens; but the Washington-based research and
advocacy group noted that access is by way of designated,
censored, so-called cyber points “at prices few can a ord.”
As reported by USA Today (15th January), Freedom House
asserted that high fees, exceptionally slow connectivity,
and extensive government regulation in Cuba result in “a
pronounced lack of access to applications and services other
than email.”
Most Cuban users can avail themselves only of a government-
controlled “intranet” rather than the global Internet, with hourly
connection costs amounting to 20 per cent of the minimum
monthly wage.
So demand is there, and now so is opportunity. In September,
the USA departments of Commerce and Treasury had removed
a series of restrictions on Americans travelling to and doing
business with Cuba. The changes, ranging from investment
to banking to joint ventures, enabled American businesses to