24-hour contest to improve Posten Norge digital mail
Posten Norge (Norway Post) is holding a 24-hour contest for software developers to come forward with creative ideas to improve its digital mail platform. The Norwegian postal service is running a “Hackathon” event at its headquarters from October 29 to 30, in which 25 to 30 developers will be invited in to collaborate on the Digi Post service.
Developers, who can participate individually or in teams, will be expected to come up with executable code to improve the digital mailbox service for senders, recipients or Posten Norge itself.
They will be battling it out for cash prizes including NOK 20,000 ($3,600 USD) for the winner, NOK 15,000 for the runner-up and NOK 10,000 for third-place, with a panel of judges set to decide on the winners.
Winning ideas could also see the offer of a partnership deal with Posten Norge to implement the idea.
Thomas Mathisen, director of Digi Post, said the collaborative contest was about bringing together some of the “best minds” to help make Digi Post as user-friendly as possible.
He said: “The Post Office is interested in contributions during the Hackathon that will strengthen Digi Post for users – for those who send mail, and for those of us that work with the system. During the Hackathon, we will encourage any ideas that do this, but it is important to be creative and to think simply, since 24 hours can pass quickly.”
Digi Post
Digi Post was launched in spring 2011, allowing Posten Norge customers to receive their mail digitally as well as physically with an online version of their mailbox.
The service has a digital mailbox that is based on a person’s street address and national ID number.
It means consumers can receive and manage their correspondence from banks, insurance companies and government or municipal agencies all in one place, with the same security level as online banks.
From the launch of the service, Posten Norge has always encouraged its users to collaborate on the development of the platform, providing avenues for its more advanced users to get involved in the development cycle, alongside the development and testing carried out by its own staff.
