El Paquete Semanal: The Week's Internet in Havana
summary
Fieldwork across five phases over two years with 53 interviews documents a pervasive offline internet in Havana: a one-terabyte weekly package sold for $2–$5 and compiled by a human network of los maestros, packetedos and la gente. The study shows exactly how content is acquired, curated, priced and distributed, how local creators gain visibility and how personalization and price tailoring emerge from manual work, and it quantifies limits: low web access (~5%), labour-heavy scaling, censorship filtering and no real-time communication.
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chapters (9)
- 0:00Introduction
- 0:35What is El Paquete?
- 2:25Research methodology
- 3:41The role of Los Maestros
- 5:45Distribution and Paqueteteros
- 7:55Engaging as La Gente
- 10:22Socio-technical implications
- 12:24Benefits and limitations
- 14:19Conclusion and Q&A
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