The week that was: 13 July, 2012
Rounding up the biggest stories of the week in the mail and express industry, including Swiss Post and La Poste’s international alliance, DHL Express’ new Shanghai hub and the latest on the UPS-TNT merger…
Swiss Post and La Poste name international alliance “ASENDIA”
Swiss Post and La Poste announced today that the new alliance of their international mail businesses is to be called ASENDIA.
Bringing together Swiss Post International with La Poste Global Mail, the joint venture company “ASENDIA by La Poste and Swiss Post” will be equally owned by the Swiss and the French national postal operators.
Having gained EU clearance for their venture, the firms said they now aim particularly for the new business to become a leader in international business-to-consumer mail solutions.
UPS says $6bn TNT Express deal could hit 25-week delay
UPS and TNT Express said the European Commission is going to need more time to review their merger deal.
The two companies had previously suggested that with approval under European antitrust rules, the acquisition of TNT Express by UPS would be concluded by the third quarter of the fiscal year, setting a 31 August deadline for its EUR 5.16bn ($6.28bn USD) offer.
Today the companies said they were now expecting the deal to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2012 as the Commission is now expected to move to a Phase II review as “there are certain areas that require more time to analyse”. UPS and TNT said a Phase II review could take up to 25 weeks to complete.
Neopost acquires Swiss software firm
Neopost acquired the Swiss-based customer communications software company GMC Software, calling the move a “significant step in the businesses beyond mail”.
The world’s second largest mailroom equipment provider said the acquisition supports its efforts to grow faster in multichannel customer communications. GMC’s software and market presence offers Neopost better access to larger mail producers and also synergies within its existing mailroom products and its Satori address data business.
GMC also offers Neopost the basis for development of software as a service capabilities for the small business market.
DHL Express opens $175m air hub in Shanghai
DHL Express officially opened its new $175m North Asia Hub today, at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, China.
The facility covers 88,000 square metres – roughly the size of 13 football pitches – and can handle 20,000 documents and 20,000 parcels each hour.
DHL Express says the new hub means faster access to international markets for its customers, with transit times cut by up to a day for connections to major cities in Northern Asia.
Royal Mail launches MarketReach to boost direct mail
Royal Mail has launched a new marketing service to provide a full range of solutions to get businesses using the mail to promote themselves.
MarketReach brings together a blend of in-house experience and external support to offer assistance to businesses across the value chain. Using Royal Mail’s planning tool diode and market intelligence, the service will offer everything from planning, data and creative elements of a campaign through to printing, delivery and response evaluation.
The company, which currently makes GBP 1.1bn of its GBP 9.5bn revenue from addressed and unaddressed marketing mail, said it was hitting back within the marketing industry, which it said was becoming increasingly digital-led.
