Cuba Ventures Discusses Significance of U.S. President Obama
Vancouver, BC - Cuba Ventures Corp. (TSX-V: CUV) (OTCBB: MPSFF) (Frankfurt: IJA2) (the "Company") (formerly MPH Ventures Corp.) is pleased to update its shareholders on the significance of the recent visit to Cuba by U.S. President Obama. Cuba Ventures Corp., through its subsidiary Travelucion Media, is an online travel and digital media marketing company that specializes in travel marketing, electronic reservations and online booking solutions for international visitors to Cuba.
Last week, President Barack Obama became the first sitting U.S. President in almost 90 years to visit Cuba marking a historic moment for both countries as they work towards normalizing relations. There is still the overriding U.S. trade embargo the U.S. has placed on Cuba, which prohibits the vast majority of American corporations from doing business in or with Cuba. There are a select few American corporations that have obtained special licenses that allow them to operate in Cuba but, in our view, these are more symbolic in nature and illustrate the momentum building for the trade embargo to likely be lifted by the U.S. Congress. There is a unique window of opportunity for Cuba Ventures in that there is minimal competition from American companies due to the U.S. trade embargo yet, travel restrictions on Americans going to Cuba are dissipating, opening up a multi-billion dollar market servicing these travelers.
Along with U.S. President Obama, a number of U.S. companies visited Cuba as the first of a handful of American companies now allowed to operate in Cuba in over 50 years. U.S. President Obama has been instrumental in initiating closer links between select American companies and Cuba, and some of these recent developments complement Travelucion Media’s rapidly growing business in Cuba. Travelucion welcomes the rebranding of Hotel Inglaterra, Hotel Quinta Avenida and Hotel Santa Isabel which will now be operated by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. All three hotels continue to be available, as they have been for many years, through Travelucion’s proprietary Cuba Hotel booking platform and will be rebranded on the company’s network of 432 Cuban related websites in the coming weeks.
The rollout by the internet giant Google of WiFi across Cuba will further allow Travelucion Media to deal more closely with its self-employed Cuban service providers across the Caribbean nation. Another exciting aspect of this is the proposal by the company of allowing privately owned Paladar Restaurants to feature on Travelucion’s upcoming revamped Cuba-Restaurants.com website, incorporating direct table bookings with the private restaurant owners through both a Smartphone App or directly online. Communication between Travelucion’s booking platforms and Cuban private business owners such as B&B’s, Paladar Restaurants and Classic Cars rentals and the company’s booking platform, which receives +30 million annual page views, has always been a major obstacle impeding a rollout of such direct booking programs. Google’s entrance into Cuba, with its planned WiFi deployment, will ensure a rapid introduction of these convenient booking services which empower both Cuban entrepreneurs and tourists alike. The company also hopes to extend this direct booking service to include the self-employed owners of Cuba’s now famous Classic American Cars, essentially allowing visitors to book these vehicles, both ahead of time and while in Cuba, much similar to services offered by Uber. Travelucion Media already has the essential internet traffic to make such programs viable with U.S based visitors up from 11% in 2014 to almost 34% in 2016 of all online visitors to Travelucion’s 432 Cuba centric websites.
Jim Pettit, President and CEO stated, "These incremental changes that are spurred on by the warming in the U.S.A. - Cuba relations may seem token but are targeted at specific sectors of the Cuban economy that have the best and most immediate opportunities for growth. That is the already robust tourism industry and the aspects of this industry that rely on the entrepreneurial skills of the Cuban people. Private residences, B&B’s, Paladar Restaurants and Classic Car rentals are already active and growing components of Travelucion Media’s business in Cuba. We look forward to continuing growth in these sectors that allow the Cuban people to experience entrepreneurship."
Channel 7 (New York) Tiempo discussing Cuba Ventures & Travelucion:
https://abc7ny.com/uncategorized/tiempo-watch-this-weeks-show/31525/
About Cuba Ventures Corp.:
Cuba Ventures Corp. has acquired Travelucion Media, now a wholly owned subsidiary. Travelucion Media is an online travel digital media company that specializes in travel marketing, electronic reservations and online booking solutions for international visitors to Cuba. Travelucion Media owns one of the most significant portfolios of Cuban focused web assets, through 432 sites in up to 5 languages, which collectively generate over 30 million page-views per year and direct traffic to the main Travelucion booking site www.Havanatur.com .
For further information on Cuba Ventures Corp. (TSX-V: CUV) or Travelucion Media visit the Company’s website at www.cubaventures.com orwww.travelucion.com.
Cuba Ventures Corp. has approx. 61.5 million shares issued and outstanding.
CUBA VENTURES CORP.
« Jim Pettit »
______________________________
JAMES G. PETTIT
President & CEO
For further information contact myself or:
Don Myers
Cuba Ventures Corp.
Director
Telephone: 604-687-3376
Toll Free: 800-567-8181
Facsimile: 604-687-3119
Email: info@cubaventures.com