Las Tunas, Cuba.- One month after the entry into force of resolutions 98 and 99 of 2019 of the Ministry of Communications, also known by its workers as Mincom, that allow this kind of activity, the Technical Radio Spectrum Control Unit (UPTCER by its Spanish acronym) has not even reached the ten requests. Nevertheless, their executives clarify that they have provided the minimum conditions necessary to carry out these procedures.

Before and after July 29th, the date on which the aforementioned resolutions became effective, numerous people, and through different means of communication, gathered information on the necessary steps to establish private data networks, both wired and wireless. However, Liliana González Pupo, territorial director of the UPTCER, said that "there is no relation between the people who were interested and those who have effectively applied for their licenses.

Roberto Bodaño Izada, general specialist in the Unit, said that "the concerns have been related to the filling out of the documents, whether or not it is necessary to bring the equipment or if they comply with the provisions of the resolutions. Some processes have been delayed more because the equipment is not authorized and we should have asked the General Telecommunications Directorate to review them to include them in the list of permitted bandwidth."

His colleague Yunixánder Díaz, said that other concerns are related to the process of linking the Wi-Fi network of the Cuban Telecommunication Company S.A. (ETECSA by its Spanish acronym)."

IS THIS A WAITING PROCESS?

During the preparatory process prior to the activation of the Mincom Resolutions 98 and 99 of 2019 and after July 29, contacts were maintained with administrators of unofficial networks, a phenomenon that also exists in this region of the country. However, in the UPTCER Las Tunas, they think that those who could potentially need licenses depending on the equipment have not taken necessary steps. Maybe, they are waiting for supposed changes in the resolutions that, they clarify; there are no indications of further variations.

According to what is established in the Mincom regulations, the period for the operators of these data networks that have not formalized such activity will get to end next September 29th. This complies with what is instituted by the governing body of this type of activity in the country. González Pupo said that it does not mean that after that date no new licenses will be granted. "But once that period is over, we will be able to monitor more severely the existence of networks that do not obey to what is legally established."

The Cuban revolutionary government, represented by the Ministry of Communications, pursues a mutually advantageous solution that would enable the networks to adapt to the new rules. In mid-August, negotiations and subsequent field tests began in Havana to integrate them into the infrastructure of the Computing Clubs under the name of Tinored.

According to Ana Julia Marine López, Vice President of Communications, and Pablo Julio Pla Feria, General Director of Communications at Mincom, as well as José Carlos Cruz Sandoval, Director of Computerization at the Computing Clubs, it is expected that the current services of these networks will be hosted in ETECSA's data centers. At the same time, the way to strengthen them through the creation of Wi-Fi links supported by optic fiber is being evaluated; effort in which Copextel Corporation participates.

José Carlos Cruz Sandoval reported that tests were being done in nine places in the country's capital. He said that "those who are interested in joining this network should approach the closest Computing Club to their residence. In such a way, we will be able to know about potential users and their location, in order to work on the best possible technical solution."

IN TIME TO IMPROVE

In the meantime, there is room for improvement in a number of areas, especially now that the number of license applications for private data networks and high-speed wireless systems is emulating the refrain of a fashionable musical theme, as it goes "slowly... slowly". This would be the case of the accessibility problems of the web platform created to expedite the process.
In this regard, the territorial director of the UPTCER in Las Tunas emphasizes that another way to request the form is by e-mail, which for residents in the Balcony of the Easter Cuba is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Likewise, it has not shown all the agility that the payment of the licenses should have. Mincom's resolutions establish that this must be done in the national banking system through the payment model CR-09, issued by the National Office of Tax Administration (ONAT).

This requirement adds a step to the applicants that, perhaps, it could be expedited if it were integrated to the existing digital payment platforms such as Transfermóvil or simply by letting the interested parties know that the aforementioned CR-09 is also in the hands of the managers-payers, self-employed workers. These ones are specialized in the collection and payment services associated with the Cuban Tax System.

However, the point that raises the most questions comes from the fact that no mechanism has appeared to advise those interested in installing their private data networks and high-speed wireless systems. It is taken for granted that those who wish to do so are specialists of the matter, something that could not necessarily be valid for all cases, especially if we take into account that the development of technologies has placed this type of equipment in the hands of the public.

At this moment, a vacuum is being created that could be filled by methods that are not completely legal. There is hardly any outline of the possibility that in the future an activity will be authorized from the transitional provisions of the Regulation for the use of high-speed wireless telecommunications networks. It could be included in the framework of self-employment that will make possible to provide the public with commercial Internet access services in well-defined areas through radio local area networks. This figure, perhaps, would be the right one to advice on the installation of this type of networks. There is still time to avoid scenarios of improvisation or commission of illegalities when the purpose is precisely to order the Cuban radio-electric space.

Infographic: István Ojeda

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