26 January 2011

CUBA / VENEZUELA: U.S.Telecoms Drool Over La Habana Foothold But Pricing Dispute Blocks Them.

BLOOMBERG/ Charlie Devereux and Blake Schmidt /

   As Alcatel lays a $70 million, 1,600-kilometer (1,000-mile) underwater fiber-optic cable between Venezuela and the Cuban city of Siboney...a pricing dispute over the maximum per minute rate between the U.S. and Cuba may have cost American companies a toehold in Cuba's recently opened telecommunications market.
    With a population of 11.4 million under-served users, Cuba could be the Caribbbean's biggest telecom market.
    “This is a huge missed opportunity,” said business researcher Chris Sabatini. “If you can get into a market early on, you can control it all along the value chain.”
    “Cuba is the gold mine everyone is after in Latin America,” claims analyst Jose Magana. “Pressure will build on the U.S. government to let U.S. companies participate in the opening of Cuba’s market.”