Netflix just announced that it was going to offer its streaming service in Cuba, starting at $7.99 per month. Of course, under the information exception of the Berman Amendment, Netflix has always been able to stream its movies to Cuba without violating U.S. sanctions on Cuba.

Of course, as you might imagine, the reason that Netflix did not start streaming to Cuba earlier was the difficulty Netflix would have in getting paid. Now that the revisions to the Cuba sanctions have opened up the possibility for American credit card companies to do business in Cuba, payment becomes at least a theoretical possibility. Theoretical because $7.99 per month is out of reach of most Cubans given the average monthly wage of $17 and given the cost of Internet in Cuba where access to international sites, like Netflix, costs $4 per hour. Watching a two-hour movie on Netflix would leave about $1 to spend for rent, food and all other monthly expenses. (And you thought going to the movies at the local cineplex was expensive!)

The Netflix press release notes that “House of Cards” and “Orange is the New Black” will both be made available to Cuban subscribers. So, my question is this: which of these two will Fidel and Raúl binge watch first? The political machinations of Francis Underwood in “House of Cards” or the comic prison shenanigans of the women in “Orange is the New Black?”

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