Cuba-Venezuela undersea cable to be in operation in 2011: official

Cuba-Venezuela undersea cable to be in operation in 2011: official
English.news.cn 2010-10-09 12:21:52

HAVANA, Oct. 8(Xinhua) -- The undersea fiber optic cable between Cuba
and Venezuela will be put into operation in July 2011 and it will
multiply the current connection speed by 3,000 times, Cuban Vice
Minister of Informatics and Communications Alberto Rodriguez said Friday.

"This project strengthens our technological independence and national

security," Rodriguez added.

According to the expert, the cable covers a distance of 5,340 kilometers
and its cost is 70 million U.S. dollars, with a lifespan of 25 years.

"The undersea connection will provide more quality of the
info-communications services and will create more favorable conditions
to meet the need of future development projects," he said.

Rodriguez noted that the cable "will allow Cuba to multiply the current

transmission speed of data, images and voice by 3,000 times " and will
favor the "social exchange among the countries involved in the project."

The cable will connect Venezuela, Cuba and Jamaica. According to
Rodriguez, the cable installation does not mean the end of the satellite
internet service "for the country, but it will cheapen the connection
cost by 25 percent."

An official survey released last month showed that only 2.9 percent of

Cubans had access to Internet during the past 12 months.

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