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Poczta Polska is banking on mobile phone services

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

Bank Pocztowy, a subsidiary of national postal service Poczta Polska is working extensively developing mobile banking for its customers despite its service already being available in almost every post office across the country.

A client would be able to manage his account via the mobile phone, making transfers and verifying account balances, but also making small payments like for parking. “We cannot reveal detailed solutions, but these will be services totally new on the Polish market,” said Piotr Kamiñski, president of Bank Pocztowy. A detailed offer will be provided later this year and according to the president, in this case, time plays the key role. “If we do not introduce a service this year, than next year it will be too late, as the competition will be ahead of us,” said the bank’s president. Bank Pocztowy, which so far has been chasing the leaders, believes that a strong entrance into mobile banking will enable it to catch up and take over competitors to become a mid-size, easily accessible institution, offering services to 1 million clients.

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New strike threat is looming for Royal Mail

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

Royal Mail faces a fresh wave of industrial action, only months after the end of one of the biggest strikes to hit the postal service in years.

The Times has learnt that unions have rejected the postal group’s plan to overhaul its pensions scheme and are poised to ballot nearly 150,000 members over whether they back the plan or not. Last year, postal services were crippled by several days of national strikes in a long-running dispute over pay and working practices.

Royal Mail said a year ago that it intended to close its final-salary scheme to new employees and to raise the retirement age from 60 to 65. It then proposed ending the final-salary scheme for all employees and creating a career average plan, which would be linked to the retail prices index.

When last year’s dispute over pay was settled, Royal Mail agreed to continue talks with the unions over pensions, but they have failed to make progress after nearly four months.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents postal workers, and Unite, which represents postal managers, will start to ballot their members shortly. If, as officials believe, the pension plans are rejected in the ballots, a subsequent strike vote would be virtually certain. The unions are recommending rejection of Royal Mail’s plans.

The threat of fresh strike action comes as Royal Mail is under increasing attack over the shutting of 2,500 post offices. The closures, which are being rolled out regionally, have hit London, sparking growing complaints that profitable, popular offices are being shut. There are also complaints over the consultation period, which lasts only six weeks.

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Report calls for new commercial model for Royal Mail

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

An independent report has dismissed the often-cited option of ‘structural separation’ for the Royal Mail as the best way to rejuvenate the UK postal market because of the ‘potentially significant and damaging costs’. Instead it recommends a radical new commercial model with two accountable businesses operating independently with distinct targets, objectives and incentives resulting in improved customer choice, service and value for money.

The report was undertaken by David Stubbs of Europe Economics to contribute to the ongoing industry consultations and to review different business models for Royal Mail. In particular the report considers the impact of different options for Royal Mail on the promotion of commercial and customer focus in the mail sector. It was commissioned by UK Mail, one of the leading players in this market.

The new model would introduce a new business unit, Royal Mail Sales which would interface with customers, and would contain all existing retail sales, marketing and product development aspects of Royal Mail. It would operate alongside Royal Mail Network which will be responsible for the operational delivery of postal services and would sell services to Access Customers, Downstream Access providers and Royal Mail Sales on an equal and transparent basis.

The report goes on to state that this model would create “commercial equivalence” for Royal Mail in dealing with all customers which is vital to create a model for a healthy, vibrant and sustainable mail market.

The report also recommends the inclusion of new arrangements whereby competing operators were able to gain access by arrangement with Post Office Ltd to Royal Mail’s network of post offices in offering mail and parcel services to posting and receiving customers.

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The Cuban postal service has received a deluge of letters and packages in recent years

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

The Cuban postal service has received a deluge of letters and packages in recent years.
To get an idea of the magnitude of the growth, the number of deliveries in 2007 was 47.6 percent higher than those of 2006. Meanwhile, at the end of January, statistics showed a 59 percent increase with regard to the same period of the previous year.

The postal service’s international exchange office’s first vice-president, Eliecer Blanco, explained that providing mail security includes two main aspects: investment and the human factor. With regard to the first, he assured that they are working hard to materialize projects aimed at improving organization.

The second one, he stressed, is essential. “We are currently evaluating the issue with Aero Varadero (the mail cargo company with which we process the customers’ claims to the airlines), TRASVAL (the main transport contractor for the postal service) and with Postal Customs, to guarantee that all parties fulfill their obligations.”

Blanco said that in the delivery process from sender to recipient the final movement corresponds to the Post Office, ultimately responsible for losses and plundering of mail. However, he noted that external entities participate in this process: “If we don’t organize ourselves and each individual doesn’t fulfill his or her obligations, problems are created. This leads us to the adoption of technical and organizational measures.”

He said some of the answers include an assessment of the flow from air terminals to Post Office units to minimize the time the mail is at these facilities; simplification of customs processes to speed up reception and distribution; automation of the process, and reaching agreement with the Astro Bus Co. for transporting postal cargo since the vehicles currently used to carry out that service are insufficient.

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La Poste Group relaunches its press delivery service 7/7 service through Neopress subsidiary

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

La Poste has acquired the press delivery operator Media Express through its subsidiary Neopress, in order to become a major press distributor in France, according to Neopress CEO Nicolas Routier.

The group has invested EUR 40 million in the new morning home delivery to be effected 7 days a week in and around the region Ile-de-France and in the 30 biggest metropolitan areas of the country.

Along with the takeover of the press deliver operator Paris Actions Presse (PAP) in May 2007 and the inauguration of the first industry platform in press handling in Chelles, East Paris, in October last year, this acquisition is part of the programme of initiatives in favour of the press sector, introduced by La Poste CEO Jean Paul Bailly.

Specialised in press delivery, Neopress delivers more than 17 million exemplars in the Ile-de-France region. With the new acquisition, it expects to deliver more than 26 million exemplars.

Founded in 2007, La Poste subsidiary distributes a total of about 50,000 newspapers every day and employs 400 people working in 5 distribution centres in the region of Paris.

Media Express was founded in 1991 and is a major player on the French market of press delivery. It distributes the local newspaper “Le Progres” and several other national publications in the metropolitan area of Lyon . It handles about 8 million exemplars annually.

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USPS pushes back Intelligent Mail barcode implementation (U.S)

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

Postmaster General John Potter announced today that the US Postal Service will push back the date of implementation for the Intelligent Mail barcode from January 2009 to May 2009.

In an advisory notice, Potter wrote that the decision to change the date was in response to public feedback. “Many of you told us that January 2009 was too soon,” he wrote. “We will propose a May 2009 implementation, concurrent with our next annual price change.”

In March, the USPS will host four symposiums on Intelligent Mail in Las Vegas, Chicago, New York and Atlanta. Intelligent Mail will also be a topic of discussion at the upcoming National Postal Forum in May and at the National Postal Customer Council Day in September, Day added.

The USPS first started seeking feedback on proposed rules related to the use of the Intelligent Mail barcode in December. At that time, the USPS said that mailers would have to use one of two proposed Intelligent Mail options in order to qualify for automation prices for letters and flats after January 2009.

However, in today’s notice, Potter said that the Postnet barcode will remain eligible for automation prices until May 2010. “Those prices will be announced with the May 2009 change,” he wrote.

Potter said that the USPS plans to publish its proposed rulemaking on the Intelligent Mail barcode in the Federal Register next month. The new proposal will include new options for mail owner identification. He said that the USPS is also eliminating the requirement for green color bars on the container label, a concern that was also brought up at the Mailers’ Technical Advisory Committee meeting in January.

Potter also said that the new May 2009 implementation of the Intelligent Mail barcode will include separate prices for the full-service and basic options.

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GO! expands to Denmark

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

The German express operator GO! Express & Logistics has established a new partnership with the Danish express company 3D, De Daglige Distributorer, in order to expand its international network.

GO! Denmark was founded by 3D at the beginning of 2008 with two new stations in Western and Eastern Denmark. The new premium partner offers an area-wide express service for time-definite overnight shipments.

Up to 25,000 express shipments per month are currently being transported within Denmark. Another 2,200 shipments are sent from Germany to Denmark every month.

Philip Schreiber, Area Manager International at GO! Overnight Service Germany, said: “With our new partner in Denmark we are further approaching our objective of becoming quality leader in the CEP segment in Europe. With 3D we have found our ideal premium partner.”

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Itella first in Finland to test automated parcel terminal

Posted by | Mar 3, 2008 | |

Itella is the first in Finland to test an automated parcel terminal, which offers a new way for consumers to pick up their parcels. The three-month pilot project will be launched in cooperation with Hobby Hall on 3 March in Itäkeskus, Helsinki.

The automated parcel terminal increases the number of ways in which consumers can receive parcels. In the future, consumers can choose to pick up a parcel from the post office, from an automated parcel terminal or even have it delivered to their home.

Typically, an automatic parcel terminal has 50-100 parcel lockers, the size of which can be altered. The customers receive an SMS informing them of a parcel that has arrived and with which the locker in the automated parcel terminal can be opened. The safety and usability of the terminal’s interface corresponds to that of an automatic teller machine.

The pilot project is realised together with Hobby Hall, the distance selling market leader in Finland, and its customers. Those selected to participate in the pilot study will receive an SMS message, which they can use to pick up a free parcel from Hobby Hall at the Itäkeskus terminal.

As part of the pilot project, Itella will perform an extensive survey of the service needs of consumers and distance selling companies and create a terminal service concept that meets the actual Finnish market demands. “After the pilot project is over, we will introduce an automated parcel terminal operations model suitable for the Finnish markets and announce our future plans,” says Aku Happo.

The English company Business Direct is in charge of the technical realisation of the automated parcel terminal.

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