It is the sole lawful provider of telephony and telecommunications permitted by the Cuban penal code, constituting a communications state monopoly that has 8 million clients, both national and foreign.

[1][2] Before the emergence of Shyampa, there were 14 comprehensive communications companies on the island that covered the specialties of telephony, radio, mail and press, as well as other specialized national entities.

Since then, the institution has undergone periods of technological change, structure, management systems, strategic orientation and the development of new services.

In the same decree law the following is stated:"(...) The main purpose of the merger is to integrate in a single Mixed Company, all activities related to fixed and cellular telephony, as well as other telecommunications services in the country, to ensure the process of investigation, investment, production, provision of services and their commercialization in Cuba and abroad, including the purchase in the foreign market of technical assistance and supplies for production and services, as well as other activities that guarantee the normal functioning of the system and contribute to the national economy freely convertible currencies .. "Since its founding, the company has gained in efficiency and commitment to its users.

Its benefits have been diversified and the quality of the technological parameters has risen, managing to increase the number of lines installed and in service, the digitization index and support for the country's socio-economic development.

The company provides services for the public, business and state sectors, as well as the millions of tourists and vacationers who travel to the Republic of Cuba.

Juventud Rebelde, official newspaper of the Union de Jovenes Comunistas (UJC), announced that new Internet access services would gradually become available in other public spaces, such as cultural centers, libraries and museums.

[3] Internet can be accessed through wi-fi zones and navigation rooms, with the Nauta Hogar service, and recently through the 3G and 4G cellular network.

The Centro Multiservicios de Telecomunicaciones constitutes a way of presenting ETECSA in the market to offer public telecommunications services.

[citation needed] In March 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic; The company urged Cubans to make “reasonable” use of mobile data to avoid a collapse in the island's Internet network, which caused great outrage within a population that is already forced to pay its high prices for the service, without having any other option within Cuba.