12 



T II E C U n A R !•: \' I K W 



CUBAN TELEPHONE. COMPANY CONCESSION UPHELD 



(Si>ecial l« Tiik Cuba Rkview] 



Witli tlic decision of tlio Supreme Court rendered .\i)ril 22nd in the case of the 

 application of Jose Fernandez to establish a teleplione system in the town of (iuanajay 

 the long extended controversy as to the constitutionality of the law under wliich the 

 L uhan Telephone Company received its concession to f)perate long distance and local 

 systems throughout the Island is delmitely ended, the constitutionality of the law heing 

 affirmed hy the unanimous opinion of the Court. The first step in the direction of the 

 modernization of telei^honic conununication in Culia was taken about four years ago 

 when the Red Telefonica I)e La Habana, the direct predecessor of the present Cul)an 

 National Telephone Company, undertook to establish a central station in Marianao, 

 under the title of the Marianao Telephone Company and extend its lines through a 

 modern system of subways throughout the city of Havana to replace the obsolete 

 overhead-wire system that had been in use many years. The concession obtained for 

 this was, however, declared illegal. Under the old Spanish law long distance telephones 

 were prohibited and it was held that the extension of service from Marianao, which 

 is practically a suburb, to Havana constituted a long distance service. Efforts to 

 induce (Governor Magoon to change the law were fruitless, the Governor holding that 

 long distance telephones w-ere contrary to public policy as entering into competition 

 with the telegraph service owned and operated by the Government. 



On July ISth of last year, however, the Cuban Congress passed a law permitting 

 the erection of long-distance lines and descri1)ing the conditions under which concessions 

 should be granted. The c(3nspicuous principle of this law- was that no concession should 

 be exclusive. Under the old Spanish law all concessions, which were given only to 

 cover a certain radius from the central office and in no instance to cross the boundaries 

 of the municipality in which the central office was located, were granted exclusively for 

 a certain period of years. Under the new law, while these concessionaires are confirmed 

 in their rights, the Cuban National Telephone Company, or any other company whicli 

 may secure a concession, may enter the territory of the old companies for the purpose 

 of establishing long distance service, or may estaljlish local service with the consent 

 of the concessionaires. 



The Cuban Telephone Company has now installed in Havana a modern plant of 

 the most approved design with a capacity of ls,00{) subscribers and w^ill have an 

 automatic service in full operation in the capital within two montlis. The main 





New branch office of the Cuban Telephone Company in Vedailo. The building 

 re])resents a radical departure from the ordinary type of industrial buildings, 



