Postal Digest – News from Japan, Brazil, Spain, Italy and the US
Rounding up some more news headlines from the postal sector around the world, including innovation in Japan and Spain, investment at Brazil Post and regulatory transparency in the US…
Japan Post launches ecommerce service
Japan Post and its direct mail subsidiary JP Media Direct have launched a new service this week that will help small and medium-sized businesses get into ecommerce.
The company said its new Oneline service will offer retailers a complete range of services from developing ecommerce systems, taking orders and preparing packages to payment confirmation and delivery. Japan Post will provide collection and delivery of mail items, while JP Media Direct will handle the system development and operational side of the ecommerce.
The new service is launching in three regions of Japan as of this week, and will roll out nationwide by the end of 2012.
Brazil Post buys 5,000 more vehicles
Brazil’s Post and Telegraph Company has just purchased 5,612 new vehicles to expand its fleet across the country.
The purchase of 301 vans and 5,311 motorcycles should improve productivity and delivery quality, Brazil Post said. The vehicles are expected to arrive by the end of October.
The move represented an investment of BRL 38.6m ($19.1m USD), as part of a wave of investments by the Post in improving working conditions and quality of services for customers. Over the past 18 months the company has invested more than BRL 150m ($74m USD) in buying about 12,000 new vehicles and cargo-handling equipment.
Correos trials postage-paid postcards
Spain’s Correos has been selling postcards with postage included as of this month, in a pilot running until the end of September.
The company is aiming to make it easier to send postcards with the project, which will se 36 different postcards produced for sale in three Spanish cities, totaling 108,000 pieces. The postcards are being sold at the price of EUR 0.72, which reflects the price of mailing a postcard anywhere in Europe, plus printing.
Correos said it will assess the results of its pilot in October and decide whether to launch the postcards nationwide.
PRC achieves top marks on freedom of information
America’s Postal Regulatory Commission has received top marks in a federal government review of agencies’ compliance with US freedom of information laws.
The Commission, which works hard to be one of the most transparent of the world’s postal regulators, was among just nine of 99 federal agencies to meet all criteria under the Freedom of Information Act in the Department of Justice review. Commission chairman Ruth Goldway said: “The results of the DOJ report underscore the PRC’s mission of ensuring accountability and transparency.”
The Commission is currently carrying out major reviews of US Postal Service plans to restructure its rural post office network and transform First Class Mail delivery standards in the light of drastic changes to the mail market over the past few years.
Poste Italiane in partnership agreement with municipalities
Poste Italiane has signed an agreement with the National Association of Italian Municipalities to work together to expand local government services provided through post offices.
Italy has a network of 14,000 post offices, with Poste Italiane describing it as the “natural partner” of local public administrations in reaching out to citizens.
The two organisations recognised that they can collaborate to provide services like the issuing of paperwork, appointment booking, payment services and local tax processing, as well as residence permits.
