''El Paquete Semanal'' ("The Weekly Package") or ''El Paquete'' is a one
terabyte
The byte is a units of information, unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character (computing), character of text in a computer and for this ...
collection of digital material distributed since around 2008
on the
underground market in
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
as a substitute for
broadband Internet
In telecommunications, broadband is wide bandwidth data transmission which transports multiple signals at a wide range of frequencies and Internet traffic types, that enables messages to be sent simultaneously, used in fast internet connections. ...
.
Since 2015, it has been the primary source of entertainment for millions of Cubans,
as
Internet in Cuba
The internet in Cuba covers telecommunications in Cuba including the Cuban grassroots wireless community network and Internet censorship in Cuba.
Since its introduction in the late 1990s, Cuban Internet has stalled because of lack of funding, t ...
has been suppressed for many years with only about a 38.8% Internet penetration rate as of 2018. El Paquete Semanal has its own page that is running in the United States, where one could view its contents and is consistently updated every week.
Cuban government
According to El Paquete Semanal, by Michaelanne Dye, et al., anywhere from a 4th to a 20th of the population had access to the internet. It is also said that, "Cuba was one of the first 'developing' countries to connect to the WWW."
The Cuban Government has also been investing in more internet access for the people, with the use of
ETECSA
Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba S.A. ( en, Telecommunications Company of Cuba; ETECSA), is the Cuban state company that provides telephony and communications services in Cuba. It is the sole lawful provider of telephony and telecommunicatio ...
, a service that the citizens could pay 1 CUC (equivalent to an American Dollar) for one hour of internet use. This has become the most popular method for people to become connected to the internet, mainly used to connect to social media, such as Facebook.
El Paquete content
Currently, an archive of the weekly packages can be found online, where users can view the content of upcoming and past packages before they obtain the actual package.
The most popular content is TV series, soap operas, music, films, and the illegal classifieds but El Paquete Semanal also contains video clips, Spanish language news websites, computer technology websites, instructional videos, software, and advertisements for local Cuban businesses.
Most buyers request only certain parts of the Package which may sell for as little as $1 US.
Since a 2011 legal property reform regarding private enterprise, a Cuban advertising firm called Etres has used the new regulations surrounding advertising to legally charge local businesses a small fee to arrange for a short clip or poster promoting their establishment to feature in the Package.
It is still unknown who compiles the material or from where it was obtained.
Some have theorized that the lack of pornographic material and lack of anti-government views in the package may indicate the Cuban government is involved in its production.
Anti-Paquete
One way the government has attempted to deal with the spreading of El Paquete is by creating their own pirated media source mimicking El Paquete called ''Mochila'' or ''Maletín,'' which means "bookbag" in English.
This media package offered classical movies, music, and educational materials, but was ultimately very unpopular.
See also
*
Sneakernet
*
Twilight (warez)
References
[Alejandro Rodríguez.]
Voces desde Cuba: El millonario negocio del peculiar “internet” cubano sin conexión a la red
, bbc.com, 10 September 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2017. (In Spanish)
[Palmira Koukkari Mgenga om unga kubaner i en tid av förändring]
, ''Radiokorrespondenterna'', Sveriges radio
Sveriges Radio AB (, "Sweden's Radio") is Sweden's national publicly funded radio broadcaster. Sveriges Radio is a public limited company, owned by an independent foundation, previously funded through a licensing fee, the level of which is d ...
, 22 May 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016. (Swedish)
External links
The Cuban CDNIndexes of the Paquete editions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paquete Semanal, El
Internet in Cuba
Internet censorship
Freedom of information
File sharing
Internet properties established in 2008
Computer-related introductions in 2008