 Welcome
to PostCom Radio
PostCom Postal Podcast
Join PostCom President Gene Del Polito and PostCom Board members
Jolene Johannes, Lisa Wurman, and Michael Winn in a discussion of
the Postal Service's rules governing tabbed
booklets and what the rules mean to mailers.
[This was
recorded in the Exhibit Hall at the National Postal Forum.] |
May 26, 2009
IT
World Canada has reported that "Duncan Mortimer and his 31-year-old Mini will
drive 36,000 miles around the world for charity. Lead sponsor Pitney Bowes is
tracking the tour with a GPS system and location intelligence software. The
31-year old Mini is equipped with Pitney Bowes’ mapping and geographical
analysis software MapInfo Professional, which is linked to a GPS system that
Mortimer is using to replace paper maps. The most important part of the
technology is the global addressing. Federating information streams and global
addressing in terms of the individual are the future of location intelligence
software, according to Barota. As an individual, you won’t have to maintain your
postal address, because it becomes virtual you, attached to your identity."
Xinhua has reported that "Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang Tuesday urged
the country's postal firms to promote their logistics services in rural areas to
better serve farmers' needs."
 According
to the Wall
Street Journal, "Papa John's International, the
U.S. Postal Service and General Electric have begun to incorporate
"augmented reality," or AR -- a technology that lets consumers interact with
hologram-like images -- into their marketing. One well-known example of AR: the
yellow first-down lines in TV broadcasts of football games.
This week, the Postal Service will start
running an ad campaign that touts a flat-rate shipping fee for its Priority Mail
service. The online portion of the ad effort includes a "virtual box simulator"
on the prioritymail.com site. The simulator allows consumers to hold an object,
such as a cup or a book, in front of a Webcam and use the resulting 3-D image to
determine the right size box for shipping the object. The push into AR
comes as companies have grown dissatisfied with relying solely on static
advertising or passive media like TV commercials, which have washed over coach
potatoes for years. In pursuit of alternatives, they have pumped money into
approaches that encourage consumers to "engage" with their message or product,
something ad executives believe helps increase sales."
According to
Federal Business Opportunites, "The United States Postal Service (USPS)
wants to partner with a supplier who has NATIONAL DISTRIBUTION AND WAREHOUSING
CAPABILITIES to introduce a range of greeting card formats to be sold at postal
retail locations."
Stuff.co.nz has reported that "Sending mail overseas will soon be more
expensive. New Zealand Post says it is raising prices from July 7 after seven
years of holding them in the face of increasing costs. Postal Services chief
executive Peter Fenton today said the price increases were largely driven by
what overseas postal organisations charged NZ Post to deliver mail in other
countries."
GenevaLunch has reported that "The Swiss postal system, La Poste, had first
quarter 2009 profits of CHF198 million, down CHF30m or 13 percent from the same
period in 2008. The group faces greater competition in July 2009 and falling
revenues from letters, down 3.1 percent in the first three months of the year.
It says it expects earning for 2009 to be down sharply from 2008. La Poste says
its lower profits were due “to pay rises, writedowns on financial investments
necessitated by the situation on the financial market during the quarter under
review, as well as the decline in letter volumes.” Operating income rose by CHF
35m to CHF 2,208m, due mainly to “currency effects in international postal
traffic.”
Express Buzz has reported that "For those with transferable jobs, the ones
living in rented accommodations and those having to shift frequently from one
place to another, furnishing address or residential proof in times of necessity
like opening a bank account, applying for loans or getting a telephone
connection has been a huge problem. The difficulties would soon be a thing of
the past in the twin cities, thanks to a unique service of providing Proof of
Address Card rolled out by India Post, Orissa Postal Circle in Bhubaneswar and
Cuttack from today. The photo I-card would serve both identity and residential
proofs."
 The
National Association of Major Mail Users has
reported that:Canada Post Corporation "recorded a consolidated net income of $90
million on revenues of $7.7 billion in 2008 according to the annual report
tabled in Parliament. To remain profitable and meet its targets, Canada Post had
to undertake a series of cost-cutting measures that enabled the Corporation to
achieve a narrow operating margin of 1.8 per cent. The current economic downturn
has not spared the mailing industry nor Canada Post. The strong financial
performance of Canada Post’s subsidiaries, Purolator Courier Ltd. and SCI Group
Inc., were largely responsible for the Corporation achieving income before taxes
of $161 million. Canada Post’s cost of operations increased by 5.6 per cent to
$7.6 billion. Total volume for 2008 remained flat at 11.8 billion units. Canada
Post’s full annual report is available online at:
www.canadapost.ca "
"Postal economics: infrastructure renewal, the impact of Postal
Transformation for customers, and pricing strategies; is one of the three major
themes taking centre stage at The 2009 Postal Forum. Join Canada Post and
industry experts as they focus discussion and planning on issues crucial to
business success. NAMMU proudly presents this platform for dialogue between
Canada Post and industry, at the Intercontinental Hotel, Toronto, June 11th."
 The
Daily Mail has reported that "The Post Office is threatening the future of
hundreds of small branches by demanding back-dated fees for cash machines that
were not supposed to cost postmasters a penny. Branches with the free-to-use
ATMs have been told they must repay two years of charges for using Post Office
cash to restock the ATMs. Some 400 branches in rural and deprived areas were
encouraged to put in the machines in 2006 to improve access to free cash for the
public."
May 25, 2009
 The
May 2009 Direct Mail Advisory
Board Update from the Universal Postal Union has been posted on this site.
The Nation
has reported that "The Government on Monday sent home Postmaster General Fred
Odhiambo. Senior officials at the Ministry of Information and Communications
confirmed the decision to send home the postmaster, but there was no word yet on
who is to replace him at the head of the Postal Corporation."
May 24, 2009
 "A
decline in the air cargo freight market following the international financial
crisis seems to have hit bottom, the head of the International Air Transport
Association said on Sunday. Air cargo, a key barometer of world trade, has
slumped amid the global economic downturn and shortage of financing. Global air
freight volumes in January saw a record 23 percent year-on-year dive. "I would
say, looking at the numbers, that it has hit bottom," the global association's
Director-General Giovanni Bisignani told
Reuters."
Scotland On Sunday has reported that "the Communication Workers Union has
accused the government of playing "political football" with the Postal Services
Bill, which sets out plans to part-privatise the Royal Mail. The union is
concerned that Business Secretary Lord Mandelson will try to rush a vote on the
bill in the House of Commons before the European elections in an effort to tame
a rebellion from Labour backbenchers. Unions were surprised to learn that the
bill received its first reading in the House of Commons on Thursday, sparking
fears that the second reading will be held before 4 June. They say this will not
only limit the time for debate but could force many Labour backbenchers who are
staunchly opposed to privatisation to side with the government out of fear of
making the party appear fractured before voters go to the ballot box."
May 23, 2009
Barron's has noted that "FedEx is considered an airline, for the purposes of
regulatory oversight, even though most travelers probably wouldn’t want to book
a flight to Memphis on one of its jets. At least, no passengers who saw ”Cast
Away” are going to be less than anxious to. For one thing, there’s no meal
service. But FedEx’s days of being viewed as an airline by government regulators
might be running short. A legislative proposal has suggested transferring
FedEx’s regulatory status to the National Labor Relations Board from the
National Railway Labor Act. The implication for FedEx: the move could make it
easier for labor unions to organize its pick-up and delivery personnel."
According
to
Associated Content, "The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has come one step
further in its quest to deliver mail just five days a week instead of six."
Bloomberg has reported that "United Parcel Service Inc., whose political
action committee has given more money to federal lawmakers than any other
company over two decades, is a major beneficiary of legislation approved by the
U.S. today House that would reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration. The
measure includes a provision making it easier for rival FedEx Corp. workers to
unionize. Under the measure, drivers for Memphis, Tennessee-based FedEx could
form unions locally rather than hold a national election. UPS’s truck drivers
are members of the Teamsters Union. UPS says the legislation would level the
playing field, as unionizing would likely bring changes in pay and work rules
that would raise FedEx’s costs."
MyFoxMemphis has reported that "Some people are finding warnings from the
post office in their mailbox, instead of their mail. Jocelyn Agnellini only gets
her mail a couple times a week. The post office says when a car is parked in the
proximity of her mailbox; they will not deliver her mail. On those days she
finds a note in her mailbox explaining why she has no mail. "So they're taking
the time to put the note in the mailbox but they won't put the mail in the
mailbox," says Agnellini. But when she has complained to the post office, all
she received was an email of their policy. It reads: "Dismounting from the
vehicle to make mail delivery to a box would put our carrier's safety in
jeopardy."
The
Mount Airy News wants to know: "The post office has always been known for
getting the mail to its destination through rain, snow, sleet and hail. So why
can’t it have a stamp machine that works?"
According to
The Gleaner, "We cannot replace institutions like the post office and the
bonding it created as a by-product, but we can learn from and apply their
wonderful side effects of building and sustaining relationships."
 The
Mainichi Daily News has reported that "All four of Japan's postal companies
posted net surpluses in the business year that ended in March this year, company
officials said."
From
PR Web:
"The idea behind Creative Mailers.com is less = more. To send out fewer mailers
to get more response."
According
to
The Mirror, "Opponents of plans to sell off Royal Mail are infuriated that a
controversial Bill, paving the way for its partial sale, was sneaked into the
Commons for its first reading. The Postal Services Bill, championed by Peter
Mandelson, had a final reading in the Lords on Wednesday. MPs expected to debate
it in the Commons next month."
Belorusskie Novosti has reported that "Zhanna Litvina was reelected chair of
the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) at the organization’s 7th
convention held in Minsk on Friday. Access to information is one of the main
problems that journalists in Belarus face, Ms. Litvina said, pointing to the
accreditation requirement as a method of restricting access to information. She
also noted that the government holds a monopoly on the distribution of
newspapers. According to her, as many as 13 non-state publications are denied
distribution contracts with Belposhta, Belarus' state postal services
monopolist, and Belsayuzdruk, a state monopolist that runs a network of
newsstands and stores across Belarus. “Unfortunately, there are no hopes for
reform in the media sector,” she concluded."
Some
notes on other advertising-based media:
- As
Contentinople has noted, "It's no secret that conventional radio has
been in a world of hurt lately, due to challenges from the Internet, the
iPod, and, to a lesser extent, satellite radio. Remedies remain elusive, but
consolidation and downsizing are a start toward stabilizing the industry.
Radio is a dynamic living laboratory of what works and what doesn't. Focus
on the listeners through research and innovation, and you see ratings
increase. When you give listeners what they want, they'll support your radio
station and its sponsors."
- The
Washington Post has noted how change is coming to newsweekly magazines.
"Newsweek will concentrate on two things -- reporting and argument -- while
kissing off any recap of the week's developments. Time will continue to recount
some of the week's news but is concentrating on long-form journalism about
people, about ideas. Will a smaller magazine have less cultural clout? Such
recent cover stories sparked a flurry of op-eds, suggesting that the power of
ideas still trumps circulation." [EdNote: Give people what they want, and
they'll pay for it. Give them something they don't, and they'll walk away. The
same also is true of postal services.]
- The
New York Times has asked: "Will May 2009 mark the beginning of the end for
the free, unfettered Internet?...I wouldn’t put my money on it....Few newspapers
generate even 10 percent of their revenue on the Internet, even after years of
double-digit growth in advertising. Now online advertising has gone into
reverse. But “pay walls” alone are not going to save the industry. Few people
will individually subscribe to dozens of different newspapers online."
The
State Journal-Register has reported that "The U.S. Postal Service is looking
at relocating some mail-processing operations from a Quincy distribution center
to Springfield as the agency tries to cut costs in the face of declining demand
and rising financial losses."
CNN has reported that "The U.S. Postal Service will reduce the amount it
pays for homes of employees who are relocating in the wake of a CNN
investigation that found it was buying large homes for more than $1 million. The
Postal Service bought this 8,400-square-foot South Carolina home so an employee
could relocate. The new policy, which is expected to take effect June 14, will
set a limit of $800,000 for a home. The limit is now $1 million, but before
February there was no maximum."
"The
Postal Service’s decision to suspend a convention leave benefit for the
remainder of the current Postmaster pay agreement is tantamount to a breach of
faith, if not contract, with the nation’s approximately 27,000 Postmasters," O.
Dale
Goff Jr., national president of the National Association of Postmasters,
charged. Goff was reacting to the agency’s abrupt and ill-conceived decision to
suspend, effective May 31, Postmasters’ convention leave for the remainder of
FY-09 and all of FY-10. Prior to May 31, the Postal Service said it will not
attempt to convert to annual leave the approved convention leave some
Postmasters already have used this fiscal year.
May 22, 2009
The
Nashua Telegraph has reported that "New Hampshire Congressman Paul Hodes on
Thursday called upon the U.S. Postal Services Inspector General to investigate
claims that supervisors shortchanged carriers by tampering with electronic
time-keeping systems in Milford and Manchester. The New Hampshire branch of
letter carrier’s union, the National Association of Letter Carriers, has filed
grievances charging that postal service managers in Milford and two Manchester
Post Offices have altered the hours worked by letter carriers roughly 800 times
in the past six years, shorting the carriers a collective total of about
$12,000. Hodes’ Washington, D.C. office released a letter that he wrote to the
Inspector General’s office on Thursday, urging that the office investigate the
grievances and report back to Hodes by June 5."
Post Europ
Here's an excellent paper from PostEurop on "The
Facts of our Value Chain." It deals with the myths vs. the realities of mail
and the environment.
DMM
Advisory:
PostalOne!®
and Test Environment for Mailers (TEM)
– We successfully deployed
PostalOne! Release 20 on May 11
to reflect the price change,
and TEM on May 18 to enable mailers to test electronic documentation and the
Intelligent Mail®
Full-Service option. TEM is available under “Electronic Data Exchange”
through the Business Customer Gateway. New Mailers can test Mail.dat®
8-2 and 9-1 files using TEM. All Mailers testing Full-Service option
capabilities using Mail.dat should submit Mail.dat version 9-1 in the TEM.
We posted a checklist on RIBBS™ to help mailers prepare electronic
documentation and migrate to the Intelligent Mail Full-Service option (http://ribbs.usps.gov/intelligentmail_gateway/documents/tech_guides/IMCHECKLIST.pdf).
The checklist provides step-by-step tasks and accompanying worksheets for
data set-up requests. Steps include using the various Guides to construct
Intelligent Mail barcodes and electronic documentation, making plans for
feedback, establishing access to the Business Customer Gateway, designing
and validating barcodes, and testing electronic documentation. We will
conduct Webinars on the Test Environment for Mailers on Wednesday, May 27
and Thursday, May 28. All sessions are from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m., EDT. Details
are posted on RIBBS, under “Intelligent Mail,” then “Latest News.” (http://ribbs.usps.gov/index.cfm?page=intellmaillatestnews).
Software
Updates for Full-Service Option – We will
deploy a software upgrade for Full-Service on June 7, in
PostalOne! Release 20.0.1. We
explained the functions supported in this upgrade on RIBBS, under
“Intelligent Mail Services,” then “Guides.” (http://ribbs.usps.gov/intelligentmail_guides/documents/tech_guides/postalone_releasenotes/postalone_releasenotes.htm).
PostalOne!
release update – The
release notes for the May 11
PostalOne!
release 20.0.0 have been updated and are available on RIBSS at
http://ribbs.usps.gov/intelligentmail_guides/documents/tech_guides/postalone_releasenotes/postalone_releasenotes.htm.
Assistance
– Please call the PostalOne! Help Desk
at 1-800-522-9085 if you have any questions or problems accessing the
Business Customer Gateway, your accounts, or submitting electronic
documentation.
The latest issue of
the PostCom Bulletin is available online. In this issue:
-
It was a small but activist crowd at this week’s National Postal Forum, a
sign that those who attended are serious about helping the Postal Service
ride out these tough economic times. This dedication was not lost on
Postmaster General Jack Potter, who thanked attendees for their commitment
to mail, calling them "the cornerstone of the mailing industry."
-
Having released its second-quarter financial results at the recent Board of
Governors meeting, the Postal Service’s discussion about its projected
year-end loss of $6.5 billion did not shock many in attendance at last
week’s National Postal Forum. Indeed, the Postal Service’s dire financial
situation has given it the rare opportunity to press for dramatic changes to
its structure and operations.
-
PostCom Board Chairman Jim O'Brien testified on the association's behalf at
a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Postal
Service, and District of Columbia. He noted that "all PostCom member
companies need a healthy Postal Service to ensure the viability of our
businesses. Unfortunately, the current health of the Postal Service is not
very good."
-
The USPS' senior vice president for operations told Congress that "without
legislative change–sooner rather than later–we will be unable to overcome
the financial pressures that threaten the viability of the Postal Service.
The most pressing need is a change in the payment schedule for retiree
health benefits." The USPS has taken and will be taking several steps to try
to get costs in line with revenue.
-
GAO told the House postal oversight panel that "maintaining USPS's financial
viability as the provider of affordable, high-quality universal postal
service will require actions in a number of areas, such as (1) rightsizing
its retail and mail processing networks by consolidating operations and
closing unnecessary facilities and (2) reducing the size of its workforce."
GAO is again looking at returning the USPS to its High-Risk List.
-
In his testimony before the House postal oversight panel, APWU President
William Burrus struck out against business mailers, mailer worksharing, and
postal worksharing discounts. He said the Postal Service suffers from a
"flawed rate strategy."
-
Read some of the excerpts from the oral comments offered by others at the
House postal oversight hearing.
-
The National Postal Forum not only focused on the fact that mail works
today, but also included sessions where the USPS and its customers and
service providers talked about innovative ideas to add value to the mail and
grow volume.
-
The USPS at the National Postal Forum announced a moratorium on making any
new changes to mailing standards effective until after the end of November
2009. USPS vice president of customer relations Steve Kearney told the Forum
audience that the decision was made based on the Postal Service listening to
and collaborating with its customers.
-
Some mailers of letter-sized booklets, often referred to as “slim jims,”
shared with the Postal Service at the National Postal Forum this week their
explorations with alternative mailpiece designs because of the USPS’ final
rule changes, which take effect on September 8, 2009. After sitting in on
the session, one must wonder if this product group will go the way of
merchandise samples, which largely were driven out of the USPS mailstream as
a result of restrictive rules and price increases.
-
Some mailers of letter-sized booklets, often referred to as “slim jims,”
shared with the Postal Service at the National Postal Forum this week their
explorations with alternative mailpiece designs because of the USPS’ final
rule changes, which take effect on September 8, 2009. After sitting in on
the session, one must wonder if this product group will go the way of
merchandise samples, which largely were driven out of the USPS mailstream as
a result of restrictive rules and price increases.
-
Royal Mail to introduce zone-based pricing. Royal Mail faces more strikes.
Royal Mail about to increase the price of processing and delivering bulk
mail to the island of Guernsey. TNT explores mail delivery in Germany.
-
Postal previews
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NetGram
 From
USPS Senior Vice President for Customer Relations Stephen Kearney:
"On Monday, I said the following in response to a question by Jack Potter:
"Something we talked about that I'd like to share with everybody here today is
that we've decided to stop imposing any new mailing standards requirements on
mailers for about the next 6 1/2 months, which takes us through the end of
November. A few folks at the Forum asked me whether this moratorium applies to
standards that already have been announced with specific implementation dates
before the end of November. The answer is that it does
not. Our purpose in making this announcement is to take away any
uncertainty or concern about new mailing standards requirements that we might
otherwise propose during the coming months."
The Postal Regulatory Commission
Public Representative has agreed "that during these tumultuous times
innovative programs should be implemented in an effort to benefit both the
Postal Service and its customers. The Summer Sale Program is intended to be such
a program. If it functions as intended, mailers will be able to increase
mailings at a lower cost and the Postal Service will generate additional
revenues during the summer period utilizing what the Postal Service maintains is
“excess capacity.”
 The
latest postal blog has been posted on the U.S. Postal Service Office of
Inspector General’s Internet site “Pushing
the Envelope.” The public, mailers, postal employees, and other stakeholders
are invited to weigh in on the online discussions taking place. To view the
site, visit http://blog.uspsoig.gov/.
Running a Summer Sale. Sale is not a word usually associated with the Postal
Service, but the Postal Service is proposing a “Summer Sale” to encourage
mailers to send more Standard Mail. What do you think about the proposed sale?
Will it succeed? Do you foresee any difficulties in administering the program?
Share your thoughts. You can visit Office of Inspector General’s public website
at: www.uspsoig.gov. If you have additional
questions, please contact Communication and Work Life Director Agapi Doulaveris
at 703.248.2322.
The
Wall Street
Journal has reported that "The U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill
that would make it easier to unionize FedEx Corp. workers, prompting the company
to renew its threat to hold off buying billions of dollars of new planes if the
bill becomes law. Supporters of the bill, including the Teamsters and FedEx's
biggest rival, United Parcel Service Inc., applauded Thursday's vote. But the
measure faces a difficult climb in the Senate. A similar bill passed the House
in 2007 but died in the Senate."
From
M2 PressWire:
"www.companiesandmarkets.com adds new report: Chinese Postal Sector Research
Report 2008 Mail order industry is the earliest form in the non-store purchasing
field, with more than a hundred years' history in developed countries and more
than a decade in China. The market scale reached over one hundred billon Yuan in
2007. With the rapid development of Chinese logistics industry, the delivery
time of mail order has been shortened greatly and the customer satisfactory
degree is stably increasing. Meanwhile, with the advancement of
telecommunications technology, mail order providers are able to offer customers
better after-sale services. Nowadays, with the prevalence of the Internet, mail
order holds several advantages including an even clearer destination and a much
higher rate of delivery compared to other non-store purchasing means such as
online shopping. Certainly, mail order itself is still unrelentingly creating
new marketing pattern and takes the Internet as another promotion channel."
The
Asahi
Shimbun has reported that "When support groups for people with disabilities
send periodicals, they are eligible for a special postal discount aimed at
supporting their activities. On Tuesday, Osaka prosecutors arrested two postal
workers, including a branch manager of Japan Post Service Co., in connection
with suspected systematic abuse of the discount system. They are suspected of
knowingly allowing advertisers to use the discount postage for ineligible direct
mail, thereby helping them to save more than 300 million yen in postage. The two
arrested postal workers were apparently not the only ones who turned a blind eye
to the irregularities. Most of the employees who took part in the screening
process at the two branches told investigators they were aware of the illegality
of the practice. Why did Japan Post approve dubious organizations as disability
support groups? Were politicians involved? And who started abusing the discount
system in the first place? We urge prosecutors to clarify these points."
WBNG has reported
that "The notion of possible job losses at the Post Office comes with
controversy. The American Postal Workers Union held a rally in protest of the
move."
Logistics Manager has reported that "DHL is to become the “Official
Logistics Partner” for carbon neutral logistics services for the UN Climate
Conference 2009 in Copenhagen (COP15) following an agreement with the Danish
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The cooperation plan includes carbon neutral
shipment of global express parcels before and during the conference for
delegates, participants and organisers. All Gogreen shipments will also be
branded with a sticker highlighting the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen
(COP15)."
The
Associated Press has reported that "A Michigan postal worker who hid
thousands of pieces of mail in a storage unit has been placed on probation for
two years. Jill Hull appeared in federal court in Detroit Thursday, three months
after pleading guilty to deserting the mail, a misdemeanor. In September,
managers of a self-storage business opened Hull's unit and discovered thousands
of pieces of unopened mail, including first-class letters. Some had postmarks
from 2005."
WhatTheyThink has reported that "FedEx Kinko's in April announced it has
sold its five UK locations to Printing Investments Limited, trading as "The
Color Company". The five FedEx Kinko's outlets, four in central London and one
in Reading, will be rebranded under the The Color Company banner."
The
following reports have been posted on the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector
General website(http://www.uspsoig.gov/)
today. If you have additional questions concerning the report, please
contact Agapi Doulaveris at 703.248.2286.
May 21, 2009
The May
21, 2009 issue of the National Association of Postal Supervisors
NAPS
Legislative & Regulatory Update has been posted on this site.
Multichannel Merchant has reported that:
-
Where Are All The Catalogers? The Wednesday morning opening session at
the second annual National Catalog Advocacy & Strategy Forum, sponsored by
the American Catalog Mailers Association, drew about 60 people. During his
welcome address ACMA Chairman Stan Krangel had clearly counted on seeing
more mailers. “I would’ve hoped to have seen 1,000 people.”
-
The catalog industry is broken, according to Robert Bernstock, president
of shipping and mailing services for the U.S. Postal Service. Huge postage
rate increases have crippled many catalogers, he told attendees at the
second annual National Catalog Advocacy & Strategy Forum, put on by American
Catalog Mailers Association, and as such, “the business model is broken.”
The good news is that the USPS wants to help the catalog industry anyway it
can. “We can reconstruct the entire supply chain to lower costs,” he said.
What’s more, Bernstock totally engaged the packed room when he suggested
taking a “relook at the whole structure”— from pricing, service, and
operational efficiencies. “We want the lowest cost delivery system,” he
said. “We need to take a major relook at the whole structure.”
-
U.S. Postmaster General John E. Potter told attendees this morning at
the second annual National Catalog Advocacy & Strategy Forum that he is
convinced his proposal for five-day mail delivery will become a reality.
At the Postal Regulatory
Commission:
R2009-3
Comments of Experian in Response to Order No. 209. Experian supports the
Postal Service's proposed summer sale in a novel way.
"We are supporting the USPS summer sale. In fact, we are going to offer
our clients a rebate of sorts for additional data orders and address hygiene
processing so that the supply chain acknowledges the importance of this
offering and participates with the USPS to make this program a success. We
believe that it is important to identify to the PRC how valuable this
program is to the overall industry given the current economic environment
the USPS and US in general are faced with today. Please keep in mind that
each day there is a delay in approving such a sale it will impact the
overall participation by mailers and mail volume
due to a time required to ramp this program up.
"Since we are usually the front end of the direct mail campaign because
of the data selections and demographics made to generate the mailing, I can
tell you that it can take up to eight (8) weeks before a campaign gets into
the mail. Every day there is a delay in the decision, it delays the
implementation for larger mailers. Also, paper, production time,
data/addresses for new prospects and logistics need to be planned and
purchased thus no one will commit to this program until a final decision is
submitted by the PRC. Therefore, we urge you to consider swift and careful
consideration and approve this first time summer sale."
DMM
Advisory:
Nonprofit Standard Mail — Cooperative
Mailings. "In today’s
Postal Bulletin
we announced an update to the standards for
cooperative mailings in
Domestic Mail Manual
703.1.6.3. Cooperative mailings
allow mailers to use the Nonprofit Standard Mail prices when each of the
cooperating nonprofit organizations is authorized at the Post Office where
the mailing is entered. Our revision reorganizes and clarifies the standards
for eligible mailings, defines ineligible mailings, and better explains
the exception to mailings eligible for Nonprofit Standard Mail prices when
employing the services of a commercial fundraiser."
According
to
Gigaom, "insufficient bandwidth has the potential to limit the cloud because
it can take a long time to send large files over thin pipes. Amazon Web Services
now addresses this problem with a new data delivery service called AWS
Import/Export, which uses the postal system rather than the Internet to deliver
data. Yes, it means customers now have the option to send their data to Amazon’s
cloud via the mail.
From
PR Newswire: "Facing multi-billion dollar losses and large declines in mail
volume, the U.S. Postal Service has ratcheted up its efforts to wring additional
cost savings from its suppliers. These efforts will only intensify through the
rest of the year. To help postal contractors operate successfully within this
stressful environment, Akerman Senterfitt's Government Contracts group will host
a one-day seminar in McLean, VA titled, Doing Business with the U.S. Postal
Service. This seminar will provide essential information for all postal
contractors and subcontractors."
According to the
Western Producer, "An advisory panel has recommended that Canada Post end
the 15-year-old moratorium on rural postal closings, set more realistic goals
for rural service and be prepared to privatize some rural delivery."
Yahoo! Finance has posted a
summary of UPS' financials.
As the
Washington Post put it, "If we still used the Pony Express to deliver mail,
someone would shoot the horse to put it out of its misery. The U.S. Postal
Service is like a once-proud thoroughbred now crippled with a broken leg -- or
two. It remains a venerable institution, but it has been so severely handicapped
by the recession that lawmakers are beginning to seriously consider cutting a
day of delivery. That gradual -- and reluctant -- shift in attitudes was evident
at a congressional hearing yesterday at which the Postal Service again made a
plea for legislation that would allow it to cut mail delivery from six days a
week to five."
Online Media Daily has reported that "After making quick work of print
newspapers, and the Yellow Pages industry, "The kudzu-like creep of the Internet
is about to claim its third analog victim," warns a new report from research
firm Borrell Associates. The victim? "The largest and least-read of all print
media: Direct mail." "Direct mail has begun spiraling
into what we believe is a precipitous decline from which it will never fully
recover," Borrell predicts. More specifically, it is projecting a 39%
decline for direct mail over the next five years, from $49.7 billion in annual
ad spending in 2008 to $29.8 billion by the end of 2013. If Borrell is correct,
direct mail will fall from the premiere placeholder for ad revenue to the fourth
-- behind the Web, broadcast TV, and newspapers."
Hellmail has reported that "Richard Hooper, the man behind a comprehensive
analysis of the Royal Mail which spawned the Postal Services Bill and the
present search for a strategic partner by the government, has hit back at calls
to halt the semi-privatisation of Royal Mail. In the Times newspaper, he wrote:
"Whichever way you crunch the numbers, Royal Mail’s overall financial situation
is untenable. The status quo is not an option. Royal Mail needs to modernise
more quickly and take a more commercial approach to its problems." he said As
chairman of the Independent Review of the Postal Services Sector, Richard Hooper
highlighted an urgent need to completely modernise the service and put it on a
far more proactive commercial footing in the face of competition from Europe,
difficult industrial relations and falling mail volume. He emphasised that
despite Royal Mail making a profit of £321m, the recommendations of the report
still hold firm and that in reality, the Royal Mail Group actually lost £229
million after tax last year and had negative cash flows of £373m. He said that
with possible negative cashflows of £400 million annually for the next four
years, the need for change was greater than ever. He warned that with this years
fall in mail volume likely to be 10%, worse in fact than predicted in the
report, and a doubling of the pension deficit to over £6bn, a strategic
partnership to secure investment and commercial expertise was paramount."
According
to
Politics.co.uk, "The postal services bill cleared the Lords last night –and
is now on the way to the Commons where a major backbench rebellion could lie in
wait. The government is determined to part-privatise the Royal Mail by selling
off a stake in the firm to a postal services provider, potentially Dutch firm
TNT. Unions have mounted a strong campaign against this proposal, arguing the
sale would be the first step towards full privatisation. They appear to have the
backing of the public."
 The
Guernsey Press has reported that "businesses
that rely on the post to export goods to the UK are to be hit hard after Royal
Mail confirmed it was hiking its charges for delivering Bailiwick post by 40%.
Guernsey Post announced yesterday that it had failed in its attempts to persuade
Royal Mail to reconsider the increase for processing and delivering mail, which
will come into force during the next two years. It is feared that the move,
which equates to an £8m. rise in charges based on current postal volumes, could
have far-reaching implications for the island’s export industry. About 60% of
Guernsey Post’s business comes through bulk mail deliveries for companies."
International Freight Weekly has reported that "Independent integrated
postal firm Business Post increased its profits and revenues during the last
fiscal year thanks to a reduced cost base."
The
Federal Times has
reported that "The U.S. Postal Service, already facing a $6 billion budget
deficit for this fiscal year, could find itself in an even deeper hole if fuel
prices continue to rise, postal officials told Congress on Wednesday. Low fuel
prices have been one of the few bright spots in an otherwise gloomy year for the
beleaguered Postal Service. But they have crept up in recent weeks — by an
average of 11 percent just this month, according to the Energy Department. And
that means a big expense for the Postal Service, where each one-cent increase in
the price of gasoline adds $9 million to the annual fuel bill. Postal officials
say the increases aren’t a problem yet. In fact, they are behaving normally:
Fuel prices typically rise at the start of the summer driving season. But
William Galligan, the Postal Service’s senior vice president for operations,
said gas prices are cause for concern."
The
Watertown Daily Times has reported that "Local postal union officials again
vowed to fight the U.S. Postal Service's plan to consolidate services from the
Watertown post office's mail processing operation with the Syracuse Processing
and Distribution Center."
The
Philadelphia Daily News has reported that "The Postal Service's Office of
Inspector General, which investigated alleged mismanagement at Philadelphia mail
facilities, identified several factors that led to problems at its Southwest
Philadelphia plant."
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