Tag: Mail Services

Sixteen Postal Operators Sign REIMS III Terminal Dues Agreement

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

After two years of negotiations European postal operators have reached a new agreement on terminal dues payments replacing the REIMS II Agreement in force since 1997.

The REIMS III Agreement took effect on 1 January 2008 with sixteen European postal operators committing to it. REIMS stands for Remuneration for the Exchange of International Mails. The sixteen posts that are now part of REIMS III are from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

Additional posts are expected to sign the agreement, which will remain open for signature for all present and former parties of the REIMS II Agreement and the REIMS East Agreement that participated in its negotiation.

REIMS III continues with quality of service standards much more ambitious than the targets under the EU Postal Directive. The individualized penalties in REIMS III for not reaching the J+1 standard and a target of 93 percent will continue to produce quality of service benefits. Transitional rules have been outlined that will continue to raise targets for those parties that have not yet reached 93% J+1.

A second benefit in the REIMS III agreement is that ensures that terminal dues as stipulated in the EU Postal Directive are cost-based, and are based on regulated domestic tariffs in the delivering country.

The parties to REIMS III have the firm commitment to continue to offer Third Party Access in line with the EU Commission’s 2003 Exemption Decision.

With the REIMS East transitional arrangement and the REIMS and REIMS East IDM Agreements incorporated into the REIMS III Agreement, it is expected that more REIMS East parties will sign the REIMS III Agreement during 2008.

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UAE’s Etisalat SMS money transfer service to India from June

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

From June onwards, UAE-based Indian workers can send money home through a short message service (SMS) on their mobile phones with connection to the Emirates Telecommunications Corporation, called Etisalat. Consumers will be given an m-wallet on to which money can be transferred from their partner-bank accounts.

The service will be extended by the end of this year to include the Philippines, Egypt and Pakistan. The next in line are Jordan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal, working in the order of migrant workforce in the UAE.

The pilot service is currently partnering with Mashreq Bank, UAE’s largest private bank, and Indian businesses Tata Communications, Idea Cellular and HSBC India and remittances may be received at 40,000 bank branches across India.

The UAE has 150 per cent mobile-phone market penetration or 6.4 million cellular phones in use. Money remitted by UAE expatriates through the banking system is estimated at Dh25.7 billion (USD 7 billion) in 2005.

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Post Office Ltd announces plan for Northern Ireland

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

Post Office Ltd today (Tuesday, 1 April) opened local public consultation on changes to the Post Office® network in Northern Ireland needed to meet Government requirements.

Proposals for the future provision of Post Office services have been published today and will remain open for consultation for six weeks until 12 May 2008.

Under the Northern Ireland proposals, 94.1 pct of the total population will see no change to their nearest Post Office branch.

The plan proposes future provision of Post Office services through a network of 492 branches, including 54 outreach outlets, while 42 branches would close. The number of branches in the network currently is 534.

Of the 492 branches that are proposed to remain open, 54 Post Office branches will be operated through a form of outreach service. These services will give customers continued access to Post Office services in their local communities on a regular basis without having to travel to another branch.

Possible types of outreach service include a mobile Post Office visiting small communities at set times; a hosted service operated within third-party premises for restricted hours each week (a local community centre, for example); a partner service within the premises of local retail partner (such as a shop), or a home service whereby customers can contact a subpostmaster by telephone for Post Office services.

Post Office Ltd is seeking views on the proposed future service provision in Northern Ireland including, in particular, views on access to Post Office services, the accessibility of alternative branches to those proposed for closure and the appropriate provision of outreach services.

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USPS steps up efforts to gain greater share from rivals

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

The U.S. Postal Service is stepping up efforts to wrest a bigger share of the parcel delivery market from its private sector rivals. And this time around, it’s trying a new tactic. In years past, the federal agency has typically challenged its competitors—FedEx, UPS, and DHL—on the basis of service (for example, by adding tracking and tracing capabilities for express and parcel shipments). Now, it’s attacking on another front: pricing.

Beginning May 12, the USPS will offer volume discounts for its Express Mail, Priority Mail, Parcel Select, and Parcel Return services. Thanks to the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006, the independent agency is able to change its pricing structure to reflect what it calls “industry standard” practices.

For instance, Express Mail will for the first time use zone-based pricing, and customers who establish corporate accounts or pay online will receive a 3-percent discount. Commercial shippers who meet quarterly volume commitments could knock as much as 7 percent more off their bills. Parcel Select will offer volume-based pricing incentives to large and medium-sized shippers, and Parcel Return will now be priced by weight, which the USPS says will significantly cut prices for lightweight packages.

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Merger between Posten and Post Danmark

Posted by | Apr 1, 2008 | |

The Swedish Ministry of Enterprise, Energy & Communications, The Danish Ministry of Transport and CVC Capital Partners (“CVC”) have signed a letter of intent regarding a merger between Posten AB (“Posten”) and Post Danmark A/S (“Post Danmark”). The companies’ rationale is to meet the markets increasing challenges through an increased competitiveness of a merged company. This merger will also secure the possibility to maintain a first class mail and parcel business in both countries continuing to reach all enterprise customers and households.
The agreement entails a merger between both companies into a combined company which will be jointly owned by the Swedish state, the Danish state, CVC and the employees. The merged company will have annual revenue of approximately SEK 45 billion and include over 50,000 employees.

Fritz H. Schur., currently Chairman of Post Danmark, will be appointed Chairman. Erik Olsson, currently the CEO of Posten, will assume the position as CEO of the merged company. The parent company will be Swedish and the headquarters will be located in Stockholm. The Swedish state together with the employees of Posten will own 60 percent of the merged company and the Danish state together with the employees of Post Danmark and CVC will own 40 percent. As part of the agreement, Posten will distribute an extraordinary dividend of SEK 1,400 million to the Swedish state. In all other respects, the influence of the owners is balanced in such a way that the Swedish state will have equal voting rights as the Danish state and CVC together.

The merged company will be organised along specialised business divisions, in a similar way as Posten has been organised since January 1, 2007. The traditional postal business in each respective country will be operated as national entities adhering to national regulations and using the same brands as today (“Posten” and “Post Danmark”). The logistics businesses will be joined under one division and under an own brand. The information logistics and graphical business will be joined under the Strålfors brand in the merged company. Beyond the four main businesses, the company will comprise group functions and one unit for shared services. Post Danmark’s 25% ownership in De Post – La Poste (Belgium) will also be part of the merged company.

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