June 30, 2003 -- Canada.com has reported that "Canada's highest-paid public servant could make more than $500,000 this year under a new federal pay scale that has boosted some executive salaries by close to 40 per cent in three years. Canada Post CEO Andr‚ Ouellette, who tops the salary list of Crown corporation executives, will receive up to $408,000 in salary this year, plus an additional 25-per-cent performance bonus."

June 30, 2003 -- U.TV (Ireland) has reported that "bucking the trend of the last 12 months, a significant jobs boost has been provided for east Cork with the announcement that An Post is to create almost 240 jobs."

June 30, 2003 -- AMEInfo has reported that "Emirates Post and Somal Post, the national postal corporation of Somalia, have signed an agreement to handle money transfer, letters and parcels between the UAE and Somalia.."

June 30, 2003 -- The Daily News (Africa) has reported that "Vanuatu has unveiled what it claims to be the world's first underwater post office providing jobs for four dive-accredited postal workers operating in shifts. But it isn't as silly as you might think - provided you buy special waterproof postcards available from shops on terra firma here. Then you scuba dive three metres down to have your postcards embossed with a waterproof stamp, specially created by Vanuatu Post to celebrate the 83-island Pacific archipelago's status as a marine paradise."

June 30, 2003 -- The Atlanta Business Chronicle has reported that "the nation's major Internet service providers have been fighting a war against 'spam' for several years. Now large corporations are joining the battle. United Parcel Service Inc. filed a lawsuit June 11 against several as-yet unnamed defendants who allegedly used UPS' e-mail system to send messages promoting sexual material and adult products to UPS customers. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta. The spammers used a technique called 'spoofing,' which means the e-mails appeared to come from a UPS employee with a legitimate UPS e-mail address. The Atlanta package delivery giant is suing the spammers under federal and state laws that prohibit computer fraud and racketeering that involves the use of computers."

June 30, 2003 -- As the Federal Times has reported, "no legislator has been as unflagging in pushing postal reform as Rep. John McHugh. The New York Republican has offered legislation to transform the way the U.S. Postal Service operates in every Congress since 1996 and, though none has become law, he is not discouraged. In fact, McHugh hopes this is the year Congress gets serious about postal reform."

June 30, 2003 -- ABX Air, Inc., a subsidiary of Airborne Express, pilots are celebrating a legal victory that upheld the medical privacy of its crewmembers.

June 30, 2003 -- The Bangkok Post has reported that "a global joint venture involving three leading providers of postal services is promoting Thailand as a regional printing and publishing hub. TPG, Royal Mail of Britain and Singapore Post consolidated their direct-mail, logistics and distribution service operations two years ago and formed G3 Worldwide Mail NV under the brand name Spring. TPG, affiliated with TNT (a multinational express delivery service) and Royal PTT Post, is the majority shareholder of the joint venture while the national postal carriers of Great Britain and Singapore each hold a 24.5% stake in the venture. Headquartered in Amsterdam, G3 Worldwide Mail officially launched its local operating unit in Thailand in April. G3 Worldwide Mail Logistics (Thailand) Co is a joint venture between G3 Worldwide Mail and Singapore Post."

June 29, 2003 -- The Associated Press has reported that "Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Sunday announced plans for a euro25 billion ($28.5 billion) tax cut next year to send a "signal of revival" to Germans unsettled by cuts to the nation's generous welfare state. Finance Minister Hans Eichel said sales of government assets such as shares in former state monopolies Deutsche Telekom and Deutsche Post would take place 'to the degree that it can be accommodated on the market.'"

June 29, 2003 -- The Russian Information Agency Novosti has reported that "Russia's entry into the World Trade Organisation will have no negative effect on the Russian postal service, Russia's Communications and Information Minister Leonid Reiman told journalists in St Petersburg."

June 29, 2003 -- According to a recent report by the Institute for Research on the Economics of Taxation, "the U.S. Postal Service requires most of the real estate it owns for postal operations, but some is excess. Properties not needed for postal operations should be identified and transformed into revenue. That would simultaneously help the Postal Service financially and assist the economy by putting scarce resources to better uses. In addition, if the tax-exempt Postal Service owned less real estate, that would increase the tax bases of financially strained state and local governments."

June 29, 2003 -- Reuters has reported that "shipping company United Parcel Service Inc. UPS.N expects to broaden its relationship with online auctioneer eBay Inc.EBAY.O even further than the ties they announced earlier this week, UPS' chief executive said on Friday. In an interview with Reuters on the sidelines of eBay Live, a user conference sponsored by UPS in Orlando, Florida, UPS CEO Mike Eskew said the partnership with eBay 'has an awful lot more room to grow.'"

June 29, 2003 -- Gulf News has reported that "Kuwait's parliament which ended its four-year term on June 4 failed to introduce economic reforms. The long-awaited privatisation has remained deadlocked in the parliament. The most notable part of the proposed law is granting each ministry the right to develop its own privatisation strategy. Long on the privatisation list are postal services and ground communications stations as well as laboratories, X-rays and security at public hospitals."

June 28, 2003 -- The Associated Press has reported that "the federal government has sued a property insurer, accusing the company of failing to reimburse it of millions of dollars in damages and losses incurred at a post office in lower Manhattan on Sept. 11, 2001."

June 28, 2003 -- The Edinburgh News (Scotland) has reported that "the Scottish Parliament has scrapped controversial plans to privatise its internal postal system after an outcry from MSPs [Members of the Scottish Parliament]. The service, which is currently operated by the Royal Mail, is instead to be taken over by the parliament itself. The existing Royal Mail employees working at the parliament will be offered the chance to stay on and become part of the parliament's own staff. There were widespread protests earlier this year when it was claimed an English firm, Business Post, based in Slough, was poised to win the œ1 million contract to deliver MSPs' mail."

June 28, 2003 -- The National Association of Major Mail Users (Canada) has reported that "the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) tabled their global offer to Canada Post today, June 27. This is a response to the basis for agreement tabled by Canada Post May 27, just prior to the strike vote. The offer is under study and discussion between the parties, with the assistance of the mediators."

June 28, 2003 -- Chris Mahoney, senior vice president of global transportation services of UPS, spoke to an audience of business leaders at the ING Management Conference. During his speech, Mahoney outlined UPS's formula for creating a sustainable and customer focused culture. He went further to explain the role technology plays in enhancing customer service.

June 27, 2003 -- BusinessWorld (Ireland) has reported that "The board of An Post today announced that it has appointed Donal Curtin to be the new chief executive of the state postal service. He will take up his position on July 14 upon the retirement of John Hynes. Curtin has had a long career at senior management and operational level in the ESB where he held the position of commercial director as well as several high level posts in its subsidiary ESB International (ESBI)."

June 27, 2003 -- Mark Acton, Special Assistant in the Office of the Chairman at the Postal Rate Commission is moving on. As of July 1, he will assume his new post as Deputy to the Chairman of the Committee on Arrangements for the 2004, Republican National Convention, Republican National Committee.

June 27, 2003 -- The Washington Post has reported that "The trucking industry, reaching a mutual lobbying pact with the railroads, agreed yesterday not to seek federal permission to run longer and heavier trucks on the country's highways for at least the next six years. Rather than battle over the issue, the American Trucking Associations and the Association of American Railroads effectively called a truce in one of Washington's longest-running and most expensive lobbying battles. They will instead spend their lobbying time and effort to promote mutually beneficial freight industry issues."

June 27, 2003 -- Word has it that the U.S. Postal Service is finding it particularly challenging to keep to its pledge not to raise postal rates before 2006. Sources have told PostCom that the USPS' financial gnomes have warned that the increases, when they come, will be in the "double-digit" range. Still don't think postal reform is necessary...?

June 27, 2003 -- Traffic World has reported that "FedEx Freight, Roadway Express and ABF Freight System are taking mid-year general rate increases in the 5.9 percent average range."

June 27, 2003 -- The BBC Monitoring Service has reported that "the turnover achieved by "Barid Al-Maghrib", Moroccan post authority, reached in 2002 1.09bn [Moroccan] dirhams (117.6m US dollars), which is a rise of 2 per cent compared to the figures of 2001."

June 27, 2003 -- Quebecor World's Trenton Tennessee Mailing Center has been authorized by the United States Postal Service to participate in the new Periodical Co-palletization Program. Quebecor World is the first company to be granted authorization by the USPS for this new program.

June 27, 2003 -- The Daily Star (Lebanon) has reported that "the head of a well-known online retailer says the Lebanese government's highly publicized e-business drive is doomed unless it does away with notoriously outdated practices. 'Official administrative requirements are costly both in terms of money and time,' said Jihad Gabriel Murr, chairman of getforless.com, an e-commerce and direct mail order company. 'With so many hurdles it is no wonder that potential investors are shying away from Lebanon.' The unreliability of the postal service constitutes yet another discouragement for international orders. Shipments are chronically late and sometimes are not delivered at all, he said."

June 27, 2003 -- Alpine Air Express Inc. with its operating subsidiary, Alpine Air, a leading provider of regional air cargo transport and logistics services, announced on Jan. 2, 2003, that the United States Postal Service had discussed potentially terminating its ASYS-R contract effectively terminating airmail service on routes under a certain distance. Alpine is preparing to file a formal protest with the General Counsel of the USPS and a federal court action seeking a stay of the new award of the contract. Alpine is also preparing to send to its employees a letter explaining the USPS' actions and Alpine's plans to contest them, and asking the employees to write to the USPS and congressional representatives to further protest these developments.

June 27, 2003 -- The latest issue of the PostCom Bulletin is available online.

June 27, 2003 -- Last December 18, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) unveiled its do-not-call registry plans. Today, it was the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) turn. According to the FCC, the no-call registry is nationwide in scope, includes all telemarketers with the exception of certain nonprofit organizations and politicians and covers both interstate and intrastate telemarketing calls. The FCC will implement the nationwide do-not-call registry in conjunction with the FTC. The national no-call database will be administered by the FTC and enforcement will be coordinated between the FCC and the FTC. A forthcoming Memorandum of Understanding, signed by both agencies, will detail the enforcement functions. The Federal Trade Commission's National Do Not Call Registry will be launched on Friday, June 27, 2003, at 8:30 a.m. EDT at the White House in a Rose Garden Ceremony.

June 26, 2003 -- The Irish Times has reported that "some 60,000 AIB customers have availed of a link-up allowing them conduct financial transactions at the post office since the scheme's introduction last November. Post offices offered added flexibility for customers, said Mr Peter Sayers, head of executive payment and e-business at AIB."

June 26, 2003 -- Dow Jones has reported that "TNT Express, a unit of Dutch postal and logistics company TPG NV (TP), Thursday said it is the first global carrier to partner up with a local courier company in Iraq. TNT Express has agreed to partner with Baghdad's largest courier company IKE Express to provide door to door delivery services to and from Iraq. TNT Express is the first international express company to link up with an Iraqi national operator since the lifting of UN sanctions and the partnership will provide more reliable services for customers in the region."

June 26, 2003 -- Expansion (Spain) has reported that "Correos, the Spanish post office, is facing a barrage of fines and investigations over alleged unfair competition. On Tuesday, the state postal operator was fined 5.4m euros by the Spanish competition court for having allegedly blocked the entry of the operators Suresa and Mail House into the postal network by imposing unfair conditions on them."

June 26, 2003 -- Eyefortransport.com has reported that "express parcel carrier Parceline, part of the GeoPost UK group, have launched desk-to-desk, a new service delivering urgent parcels directly to a named recipient at a specified location within a company or organization."

June 26, 2003 -- As CNNMoney has noted, "one company created an industry and saw its name become a verb ("Do you need me to FedEx that?"). The other is a brown, boring behemoth that delivers a ton of money to the bottom line and the balance sheet, but little gain in share price to its stockholders."

June 26, 2003 -- FinExtra.com has reported that "China Postal Savings Henan has contracted with Wincor Nixdorf for a further 100 self-service units and six cash recycling systems. The bank has already installed 30 Wincor Nixdorf units purchased from the vendor last year."

June 26, 2003 -- Le Figaro (France) has reported that "the French post office (La Poste) has broadened its consultation of French regional and local authorities concerning new ways of providing rural areas with postal services. The proposed innovations include post offices shared by one or more communes and mini-post offices in corner shops."

June 26, 2003 -- Foresee.com has noted that "using a proprietary technology that reveals what specific online actions bank customers would take if they were satisfied (such as opening up new accounts online), the ForeSee Results' analysis shows that banks are in fact undermining their own efforts to get more people to do more things online by not working harder to understand what customers want and need. The results come from a survey and analysis of current online banking customers who are also visitors to the Forbes.com web site. Forbes.com visitors represent the affluent, highly desirable segment of potential online bankers that most banks covet."

June 25, 2003 -- The Wall Street Journal has reported that:

• Michael Markowski said he noticed something strange about FedEx Corp.'s pension accounting and cash flow in its third quarter that led him to predict the company would lower earnings estimates -- two weeks before it did so. A small, red line showed up on the charts he pores over as head of research at independent research firm StockDiagnostics.com. The line indicated that for the first time in 20 quarters, the delivery company had turned negative in its operating cash flow per share, a measure StockDiagnostics tabulates with its patented algorithms. That led Mr. Markowski to FedEx's balance sheets, where he discovered a pension expense of $907 million that was booked as a prepaid asset for the company's first three quarters of 2003.
• Some of the country's biggest newspaper publishers say they are still waiting for that much-anticipated rebound in advertising. So far, though, there continues to be a gap between expectations and performance.

June 25, 2003 -- According to BizInk.com , "Stamps.com has confirmed it has filed a lawsuit against PayPal, Inc. and eBay, Inc. for breach of contract, breach of the implied covenants of good faith and fair dealing, and interference with contract, among other claims, with respect to the license agreement signed between Stamps.com and PayPal in June 2002."

June 25, 2003 -- CEP News (Courier-Express-Postal) has reported that:

• 'There is virtually no competition for letters and printed matters', is the conclusion reached by the Dutch regulatory authority Opta in its recently published report for 2002. According to the report, TPG still controls a market share of over 95%. Competitors have only been able to establish themselves in market niches or on the parcel and express market, although current legislation has opened around 51% of the letter market to competition.
• On Tuesday last week the Austrian council of ministers reached a decision on postal legislation amendments. The most important novelty is that the post will lose its monopoly on letter boxes. When the new law comes into force - which will probably be at the beginning of August - private letter services will be allowed access to those letter boxes for delivery purposes.

CEP News is without a doubt one of the best newsletters you can find that focuses on the courier, express, and postal market in Europe. For more information on a subscription to CEP News, contact the publisher.

June 25, 2003 -- ComputerWire has reported that "IBM Global Services is taking over management and operations for the IT and telephony infrastructure at Sweden's national postal service Posten, under a multimillion, multi-year deal. The 220m Euro ($254m), six-year contract will see IBM assume responsibility for three data centers including 600 servers, management of PCs and helpdesks including 180 applications, and a phone system that includes call centers, switchboards, landlines and mobile phones totaling 2,500 access points. IBM said Posten conducted a study into outsourcing and concluded it would lead to continued efficiencies minus the cost of owning systems."

June 25, 2003 -- BizPlus.ie (Ireland) has reported that the "Escher Group, the global provider of e-commerce solutions to the postal industry, is to buy the privately held, Irish postal solutions company, Anshe."

June 25, 2003 -- "Thank goodness Francie Hawkins' package was sent with some urgency," said the Farmington Daily Times. " The box, a Priority Mail parcel, arrived Saturday a mere five years and a month after it was sent. Had the package made its way through the U.S. Postal Service system as regular mail it might not have arrived for several more days. Time was of the essence for this package. Inside was four packages of jerky and sausage. All carried expiration dates in 1998 and 1999."

June 25, 2003 -- BizInk has reported that "six years after the United States Postal Service (USPS) sued the makers of the notorious videogame POSTAL and its ultra-controversial sequel, POSTAL 2, game developer Running With Scissors has been informed by the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board of the U.S. Department of Commerce that the USPS's opposition case had been dismissed with prejudice."

June 25, 2003 -- The Washington Post has reported that the United States has agreed to begin negotiations to relax aviation rules with the European Union, which seeks to form one common U.S.-European aviation market to replace a hodgepodge of treaties between individual countries. The EU's wish list includes several items that Congress, the Defense Department and U.S. labor unions are certain to oppose, such as allowing international mergers of airlines, ending all restrictions on investment and ownership between countries. A major battle is now underway involving cargo airline ownership. The two big U.S. package express carriers, FedEx Corp. and United Parcel Service of America Inc., are fighting a move by DHL Express, owned by Deutsche Post, the German postal service, to expand its U.S. market share through DHL Airways. In a move to eliminate any semblance of foreign ownership, DHL sold all its stock in DHL Airways Inc. to a U.S. group led by DHL Airways' chief executive, John H. Dasburg. Under the EU's proposals for eliminating ownership restrictions, the DHL case would be moot."

June 25, 2003 -- Tumbleweed Communications Corp., a provider of secure communication software for businesses and government agencies using the Internet, and Valicert, Inc., a leading of software that securely connects companies with their customers, suppliers and partners across the financial value chain, jointly announced that Tumbleweed and Valicert have completed their merger.

June 25, 2003 -- The Russia Journal has reported that "DHL's Moscow-based executives say Deutsche Post World Net's plans to bring its different courier-delivery and logistics companies together under the DHL brand name will bode well for their clients in the C.I.S. and Baltic states. The announcement was made last week in Moscow during the official presentation of the rebranding program. The move is part of more expansive plans to boost Deutsche Post World Net's share in the global market for courier- and business-express-delivery services. DHL employs over 700 people delivering shipments to over 500 Russian towns. It has over 130 private and agent-owned offices in the C.I.S., serving over 800 towns and settlements."

June 25, 2003 -- FedEx Corporation has reported that "total average daily package volume at FedEx Express and FedEx Ground grew a combined 5% year over year for the quarter, due to continued strong growth at Ground and in international express shipments. For the fourth quarter, FedEx Ground reported: eevenue of $880 million, up 18% from last year's $743 million Operating income of $150 million, up 17% from $128 million a year ago FedEx Ground average daily package volume grew 13% in the fourth quarter, about 40% of which was attributable to FedEx Home Delivery growth; yield per package increased 5%; and operating margin was 17.0% for the quarter.

FedEx Ground management continues to focus on improving productivity and on closely managing its costs. FedEx Home Delivery was profitable in fiscal 2003, as coverage for this network was expanded to nearly 100% of the U.S. population during the year. There are now approximately 41,000 shippers that use the service, nearly double the number from a year ago." See also the report by the Journal of Commerce and Bloomberg.In short, "thar's gold in them thar homes."

June 24, 2003 -- The Polish News Bulletin has reported that "Poczta Polska national post and Prokom IT company, owners of Bank Pocztowy bank, will increase the company's initial capital by ZL13m. A change in postal regulations will allow Poczta Polska to distribute financial products itself and the bank will focus on creating these products. Bank Pocztowy plans to close all of its 60 branches by the end of 2004 and transfer the network to Poczta Polska."

June 24, 2003 -- Le Monde (France) has reported that "the French government is reportedly preparing to authorise La Poste, the national postal services group, to sell consumer credit as part of agreements with one or several banking groups. The move would allow the public group to face more effectively the deregulation of the courier sector in 2006. The major banks, meanwhile, are against the proposal, which they say would distort competition, and central bank Banque de France also opposes it, on the grounds that it would destabilise the sector."

June 24, 2003 -- As DM News postal commentator Cary Baer has noted, "if the postal service's flats strategy would require the mailing industry to make dramatic changes to its mailing plans, especially mailing formats, the industry may be unwilling to sign on. This would doom the flats automation program. The USPS needs to provide much more than lip service to mailers' concerns. The service must be ready to make meaningful changes."

June 24, 2003 -- Hugin has reported that "Day, a leading provider of enterprise content management software, today announced that the Financial Services business unit of the French La Poste Group, Europe's number two postal group, selected Day's Communiqu‚ to power a new Web site for private customers. The new site, www.lapostefinance.fr, provides customers with financial information, interactive online services and higher levels of service through customized, user-friendly Web offerings."

June 24, 2003 -- According to Business Week, "the USPS started sponsoring cycling in 1996, figuring it was an easy, uncrowded sport to break into. The company signed Armstrong for a base salary of $215,000 plus bonuses based on performance, he writes in his autobiography, It's Not About the Bike. His salary is now $4 million, according to Outside magazine. While the USPS won't reveal how much it spends, top teams often cost over $10 million a year. And we pay the PMG less than $170,000??? Is something wrong here?

June 24, 2003 -- The Journal of Commerce has reported that:

• FedEx Freight will implement a 5.9 percent general rate increase effective June 30. The increase will be applied by the less-than-truckload company's two operating units, FedEx Freight East and FedEx Freight West.
• The chief executives of Deutsche Post World Net and DHL Express, Klaus Zumwinkel and Uwe Doerken, have been ordered to testify by the administrative law judge investigating the ownership structure of DHL Airways.

June 24, 2003 -- The Business Standard (India) has reported that "even though the rural India continues to beckon the private life insurance companies, it is the postal department that has stolen the thunder."

June 23, 2003 -- According to Sean Turner, a member of the Project 21 Advisory Council of the National Center for Public Policy Research, "the rise of technology, from faxes to email to e-commerce, and the success of competitors like UPS and FedEx, have relegated the Constitutional provision of post offices by the Federal government to antiquity. To allow the existence of the United States Postal Service in its current form is inimical to the principles upon which this nation was founded. The time for eliminating this monopoly is long overdue. The laws that protect the USPS must be repealed, letting free market forces (i.e., the will of the people) determine its fate."

June 23, 2003 -- The Government of Romania and the Universal Postal Union today signed two Agreements formalizing their relationship in the organization of the 23rd UPU Congress in Bucharest, Romania.

June 23, 2003 -- As the New York Times has noted, "at a time when lawmakers are sharply divided on everything from Arctic oil drilling to Medicare drug benefits, spam has emerged as a powerful bipartisan issue."

June 23, 2003 -- Dow Jones has reported that "United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS, news) reached an agreement with eBay Inc. (EBAY, news) to give the Web auctioneer's buyers and sellers online shipping tools that will compare the delivery prices of UPS and the U.S. Postal Service, Monday's Wall Street Journal reported. The deal, expected to be announced today, is an important step in simplifying one of the biggest trouble spots that often stand in the way of smooth transactions between the buyers and sellers that make up the eBay marketplace. Until now, users bidding on items usually had to steer from eBay's auction pages to a package carrier's Web site to figure shipping costs. The arrangement with Atlanta-based UPS will provide eBay sellers with a shipping calculator that can be displayed on their auction Web pages."

June 23, 2003 -- DM News has reported that "Coupons Inc. has developed technology that enables consumer packaged goods marketers, retailers and pharmaceutical companies to deliver Internet-generated coupons to consumers through the U.S. Postal Service."

June 23, 2003 -- According to the New York Post, "neither sleet, nor snow, nor rain, nor a fouled-up ZIP code could keep one postman from making his appointed Harry Potter rounds. The Cartusciello family of Brooklyn was one happy bunch after a kind-hearted postal worker made an unscheduled hand delivery of the coveted book Saturday - a copy that seemed destined for the dead-novel office."

June 23, 2003 -- The Times has reported that "Allan Leighton's restructuring of Royal Mail has seen the postal group spend œ564 million in redundancy and early retirement payments to date just halfway through the process. The payouts have been made as part of a generous redundancy programme, in which managers in the loss-making organisation are being offered sums of between six months' and a year's salary, in addition to a lump sum for taking early retirement. Royal Mail has said that it needs to cut 30,000 jobs from its 220,000 payroll in three years or face bankruptcy."

June 23, 2003 -- The Birmingham News has reported that "U.S. Postal Service will shut down the postal police forces in six major cities, including Birmingham."

June 22, 2003 -- Traffic World has reported that:

• FedEx Express says it will deliver cleaner air this year. FedEx Express, in a joint public-private partnership with Environmental Defense and Eaton Corp., is introducing a low-emission, hybrid electric powered delivery vehicle that could become a standard medium-duty delivery truck for the 30,000-vehicle FedEx Express fleet. It's the first large-scale implementation of hybrid engine technology in the trucking industry.
• United Parcel Service, in a partnership with DaimlerChrysler, is running a test project in which it will operate package delivery vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells. The testing of zero-emission vehicles, in two different sizes, will begin late this year and continue in 2004 and will be the first use of fuel cell technology in a commercial delivery fleet in North America, UPS says.

June 22, 2003 -- According to Dow Jones, "Amazon.com shipped out more than a million copies of the new Harry Potter book, making Saturday the largest distribution day of a single item in e-commerce history. Postal Service spokesman Peter Hass in Portland, Ore., said the service was delivering more than 700,000 books for Amazon on Saturday. FedEx delivered 400,000 books ordered through Amazon and bookseller Barnes & Noble."

June 22, 2003 -- According to ContentBiz.com, "tn the battle between push and pull applications, it turned out push-email was the killer app. But, the paid newsletter industry already felt besieged by the raft of no-cost email newsletters competing for the same marketplace and undermining the value of content itself in readers' minds. Was it possible to publish an ezine as a marketing tactic to sell people on buying a print newsletter?"

June 22, 2003 -- The New York Post has reported that "a Kansas City, Mo., mail carrier said her bosses had trouble separating fact from fiction when they fired her for delivering the new Harry Potter book too soon. Kenia Cooper said she was fired after delivering a single copy of 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.' She said she had missed the hype so thought nothing about the book being in her mail stash on Friday - although it was marked not to be delivered until June 21."

June 22, 2003 -- Bloomberg has reported that "Deutsche Post AG, Europe's largest postal service, said the credit rating cut by Moody's Investors Service last week won't affect the company's financing costs. 'The rating cut doesn't directly influence our financing costs because the predominant part of our borrowings are hedged by fixed interest payments,' Bonn-based Deutsche Post said in a faxed statement. 'We will stick to our conservative financial policy to retain our above-average rating.' Deutsche Post has spent more than $5 billion on acquisitions since 1998 to reduce dependence on the German domestic mail market, which will open to competition in 2007. The company in March agreed to buy the ground operations of Seattle-based Airborne to gain a truck-delivery network across the U.S."

June 22, 2003 -- Ire land Online has reported that "the business organisation ISME is calling on Communications Minister Dermot Ahern to withdraw the latest An Post price increase application. Price increases of between 17% and 104% are being requested by An Post from August 1. This is on top of the 8% increase granted in March last year. According to ISME, this latest increase request is set against a background where An Post has clearly failed to achieve its promised projected cost reductions. According ISME Chief Executive Mark Fielding, the price increases will have a long-term negative impact."

June 21, 2003 -- According to the U.S. Postal Service's Michael Regan, "the government of the United States, along with European governments, has played a leading role in promoting reform in the UPU and in opening up the UPU to wider participation by the private sector. Private sector organizations representing both customers and private operators will have a significant opportunity, through the new Consultative Committee, to bring their interests and concerns, from service quality and affordability to trade facilitation, to the attention of government representatives in the UPU.  

June 21, 2003 -- The Independent (U.K.) has reported that "Adam Crozier, the former football boss who took over as chief executive of Royal Mail earlier this year, stands to collect £3m if he turns the loss-making organisation around, it emerged yesterday. As well as an annual pay and bonus package worth £875,000, he could pick up an additional £1m under Royal Mail's long-term incentive plan if it beats the target of making a £400m operating profit next year." Folks...now those are INCENTIVES!!

June 21, 2003 -- The Times (U.K.) has reported that "the salary of directors at Royal Mail rose by 156 per cent last year, taking their total income to £2.2 million, it emerged yesterday. Directors' pay at the postal group, which reported losses of £197 million in the year just ended, included bonuses worth £619,848."

June 21, 2003 -- Bloomberg has reported that "Deutsche Post AG, Europe's largest postal service, had its credit rating reduced one level to A1 by Moody's Investors Service, which cited concern that a planned U.S. acquisition will increase the German company's debt. Moody's cut the rating from Aa3, the fourth highest investment grade. The ratings company said it expects to lower the rating another level to A2 after Deutsche Post's DHL unit completes its $1.05 billion purchase of Airborne Inc. this year. As part of the acquisition, the air operations of Airborne will be spun off into a separate company and Bonn-based Deutsche Post will be left with most of Airborne's debt, Moody's said.

June 21, 2003 -- According to the latest update from American Postal Workers Union President William Burrus, "a general time line has been established for management to notify eligible employees, for employees to express their interest in early retirement, and for workers to make their final decisions. Postal headquarters will instruct area-level officials to identify eligible employees and send them Letters of Interest for Early Retirement. The letters will require a response by a specific date. Postal headquarters will also instruct managers to review the personnel file of each employee that is considered eligible to ensure they meet the criteria for early retirement. A specific date for the initiation of the process will be determined at the area level, and is mutually expected to begin by the second week of July. It is expected that voluntary early retirements will take effect during October 2003 and February 2004, so they will not adversely affect operations during heavy mailing periods."

June 20, 2003 -- GATS (Global Alliance of Transportation Systems) is awarding the first licence to open and operate an airmail hub to Postal Corporation of Jamaica. Kingston, Jamaica, is strategically located to serve the entire Caribbean region plus Central America and countries in the northern part of South America. GATS will thus be able to offer national postal administrations around the world an effective and efficient network as well as advantageous mailing solutions. In conjunction with the Postal Corporation of Jamaica (PostCorp), GATS (Global Alliance of Transportation Systems) is opening its inaugural licensed hub in Kingston, Jamaica.

June 20, 2003 -- The Orlando Business Journal has reported that "now 7-Eleven shoppers can pay their bills while cashing their paychecks or shopping online at stores featuring Vcom kiosks. The Dallas, Texas-based convenience store chain has inked an exclusive seven-year deal to provide bill payment services with e-Money Systems Inc. through its electronic kiosks."

June 20, 2003 -- According to one interested postal watcher, "it makes sense for the United States Postal Service to deploy smart home delivery boxes en masse. With first-class mail volume declining, huge new revenues will come from the delivering of parcels that such boxes will prompt."

June 20, 2003 -- Dow Jones has reported that "shares in Dutch postal and logistics company TPG NV (TP) rose Friday as hopes mounted that a freeze in postal tariffs to the beginning of 2005 instead of 2007 may ease pressure on its earnings. TPG Friday welcomed Economics Affairs Minister Laurens Jan Brinkhorst's decision to shorten the duration of the freeze on postal tariffs. But the company said it was too early to estimate the decision's effect on TPG's earnings. Brinkhorst decided the government first needs to map out an overall vision on the future of the postal market - which will be ready by next autumn - before further decisions about tariffs can be taken."

June 20, 2003 -- According to Yahoo! News, "early in its effort to build a global delivery network, UPS learned an important lesson: nobody knows more about the business and culture of a country than the people who live there. After recognizing some missteps in sending American managers overseas, UPS adopted a new approach, explained UPS Chief Operating Officer Tom Weidemeyer. 'Today, we have 40,000 international employees, and how many do you think are U.S. nationals?' he asked today in a speech here. "The answer is less than 40, spread out over 200 countries. We've learned that everyone wins when we put international business operations into the hands of the people who know their local cultures."

June 20, 2003 -- The Baltic News Service has reported that "Eesti Post (Estonian Post) intends to invest in 2003-2005 almost 250 million kroons (EUR 15.97) in the development of postal and logistical services according to a new development plan. CEO Alo Streimann said 53 percent of the investments will be channeled into developing logistical services, 19 percent into modernizing the production infrastructure and 10 percent into purchasing and replacing mail handling equipment."

June 20, 2003 -- The Denver Post has reported that "a new mail tracking system will allow Frontier Airlines to keep a lucrative contract to haul U.S. Postal Service freight. Denver-based AccuCode Inc. will build the system and another system component to track passenger baggage. To keep their post office contracts, airlines must have technology in place to scan the mail."

June 20, 2003 -- According to Direct , "the Direct Marketing Association expressed its support for the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2003, a piece of legislation introduced yesterday by Senator Tom Carper (D-DE). Carper's bill calls for giving the U.S. Postal Service wider authority to make business decisions. The bill also calls for the creation of a new oversight agency."

June 20, 2003 -- DM News has reported that "The Senate Commerce Committee yesterday unanimously passed a toughened version of the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing, or CAN-SPAM, Act. Moreover, the bill, co-sponsored by Sens. Conrad Burns, R-MT, and Ron Wyden, D-OR, now calls for the Federal Trade Commission to submit a plan and a timetable to Congress for creating a national do-not-e-mail list, similar to the FTC's national do-not-call list. The legislation would pre-empt state anti-spam laws. The do-not-e-mail provision is seen as a nod to a proposal from Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY, to create a national do-not e-mail list. Schumer's bill has been gaining support lately among anti-spammers and consumer advocates." Guess that means marketers'll be back to lickin' stamps.

June 20, 2003 -- According to CFCN, "It is no secret that the number of accidents or tickets you have will affect your auto insurance rates. But even where you live within the city can make rates jump up. At least three insurance companies in Calgary are using postal codes to help them set rates."

June 20, 2003 -- The Toronto Star has reported that "Canada's postal workers voted today in favour of a strike, to be called when the union judges that the time is right."

June 20, 2003 -- Business Mailers Review has reported that:

• Software vendors should have in their hands the specifications for building interfaces to the Postal Service's new NCOALINK service the week of July 1, with the USPS settling on Oct. 1 as the roll-out date for the new National Change of Address (NCOA) technology.
• The Postal Service's proposal to expand the eligibility for fundraising mail sent at the Nonprofit Standard Mail rates has raised concerns in the nonprofit community that the changes could open the door to abuse of the preferred mail rate.
• Ask anyone active in the nonprofit community what is the one sure-fire way to lose preferred postage rates and they will tell you it is if Congress determines the rates are being abused. In fact, abuse is probably the only way the nonprofit industry would lose the preferred rates. But, the issue of whether the rates should be continued was raised in the last hearing before the Presidential Commission on the Postal Service.
• Bulk business First Class Mail is not enjoying the same stellar delivery performance as collection box mail and remittance mail. Four recent weeks of Planetcode data compiled by a Confirm user indicate that only about 80% of business First Class letters reached their destination within three days. Data for the single week of June 9-16 show that less than 60% of First Class letters reached their destination within three days. Data from April showed about 70% of business 1C letters arrived within three days.
• First Class and Standard Mail parcels eligible for delivery confirmation and signature confirmation services must meet the current definitions of a parcel: either machinable, irregular or an outside parcel.
• Competition among lettershops is intense and it appears to be eating into profitability, according to the results of the Mailing & Fulfillment Service Assn. quarterly Industry Business Outlook. The results for the first quarter of 2003 showed healthy growth in both sales and volume of items shipped or mailed for both the mailing and fulfillment sectors of the industry. But profitability appears to be stagnating, suggesting that competition for business is intense and some are making sacrifices to their bottom line in order to maintain their business.
• Three members of the Pricing Innovation staff at the USPS and an economist from the Office of the Inspector General presented a paper at a recent academic conference on the use of customized pricing by postal administrations. The paper notes the importance of pricing innovation for posts that are transitioning gradually from highly regulated monopolies to less regulated, competitive entities.

June 20, 2003 -- According to the National Times Record, "the man who helped transform the American postal system in the 1960s and became a smiling symbol of efficiency is about to turn 40. If you intend to send a card, be sure to include in the address the nine-digit code that bears his name."

June 20, 2003 -- In a recent issue of Aviation Daily, United Parcel Service public affairs director David Bolger has said that "John Dasburg, new chairman of DHL Airways, complains that someone is questioning his patriotism. What is at issue is not patriotism, but money, the money upon which DHL Airways depends for its existence."

June 20, 2003 -- Window Book, Inc. was joined by Software Marketing Associates, Inc. (SMA) for the unveiling of Window Book's new interfaces to SMA's PRO-MAIL Business Management Solution Version 5 (PRO-MAIL 5) and PRO-MAIL Fulfillment Solution. Postal Package Partner takes the order data from the PRO-MAIL Fulfillment Solution and makes it easy for shippers to fulfill and ship their orders at low Postal rates, thereby avoiding the many surcharges that other carriers tack on. Postal Package Partner also includes support for many of the parcel consolidators that fulfillment houses use to ship Parcel Select."

June 20, 2003 -- NAPUS National President Wally Olihovik has enthusiastically applauded the actions of two key Senate and House committees in unanimously reporting the "Postmaster Equity Act" to the full houses.

June 19, 2003 -- GovExec.Com has reported that "The House Government Reform Committee Thursday approved by unanimous consent a bill (H.R. 2249) granting postmasters and their organizations the same negotiating rights as other supervisors. A similar bill (S. 678) was approved by the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee earlier in the week. Under the legislation, the nation's 26,000 postmasters could use a fact-finding process when negotiating pay and benefits. Such a process already exists for supervisors. Craft employees use fact-finding during collective bargaining and arbitration."

June 19, 2003 -- Florida Keys News has reported that "lawmakers from Key West to Washington have gotten involved in an ongoing debate about staff reductions at Key West post offices. U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen's congressional aide, Henry Pollack, was in town over the weekend; he heard from a lot of concerned postal workers. On a local level, resolutions from the Key West City Commission and Monroe County Commission in support of maintaining current staff levels are in the works. Last week, regional U.S. Postal Service managers visited Key West to talk with union officials about moving eight employees to other locations. The post office based the decision on a survey from August that indicates 13 full-time clerk and craft positions -- five people are gone already -- should be reassigned outside Key West."

June 19, 2003 -- Financial Times Deutschland has reported that "Deutsche Postbank, Germany's largest bank for private customers, is to restrict banking services to the larger post offices of parent Deutsche Post, and will therefore no longer provide these services in the 1,200 small branches of the German postal service operator."

June 19, 2003 -- The Irish Times has reported that "An Post is to proceed with the sale of buildings in Blackrock, Co Dublin, and Limerick city as part of a review of its property portfolio."

June 19, 2003 -- Dow Jones has reported that "the European Union Commission has approved German mail giant Deutsche Post AG's (G.DPW) EUR247 million takeover of Securicor PLC's (U.SCC) express parcels and logistics unit. The deal doesn't trigger concerns of market dominance, the Commission said in a statement. Deutsche Post has been a joint venture partner in Securicor's Omega Holdings Ltd. since December 1998 and held an option on the rest of the company. It is now buying the remaining 50% it doesn't already own."

June 19, 2003 -- Fox News has reported that "At a time when the rest of the country is tightening its belt, members of Congress are trying to encourage the federal government to get rid of some of its own ungainly bloat -- by offloading vacant, underused and dilapidated properties. 'We must take action to stem this tide of deterioration of federal buildings and subsequent waste of taxpayer dollars,' said Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., chairman of the House Committee on Government Reform. In a hearing earlier this month, the Government Accounting Office (search) released a report indicating that billions of dollars could be saved each year by taking millions of square feet of property -- everything from old soldiers' homes to boarded-up post offices -- off the government rolls."

June 19, 2003 -- The Age (Australia) has reported that "small businesses can send their mail in bulk and receive legitimate discounts from Australia Post under proposed laws introduced into parliament. The practice of giving bulk discounts to small business already exists but is not written into legislation. The new laws also allow document exchanges to carry letters between their members' premises and the exchange, again legitimising an existing practice many small businesses use as a complementary service to Australia Post. Science Minister Peter McGauran said the bill gave the Australian Communications Authority (ACA) the power to monitor and report on Australia Post's supply of postal services. It also extended the responsibilities of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in relation to Australia Post."

June 19, 2003 -- The President's Commission on the Postal Service has published in the Federal Register a notice specifying that "now that the Commission has concluded the testimonial portion of its work, it will accept final written comments from any party who wishes to submit them for consideration. The Commission has established three methods by which final comments can be submitted for consideration and review:

1. Transmission by E-mail to the following address: pcusps_ final@do.treas.gov. Statements can be embedded in the E-mail as ASCII text or sent as a MS Word or ASCII text attachment. Do not include artwork or other graphic elements.
2. Stored on 3\1/2\ inch high density computer disk as a MS word or ASCII text document (Windows format only) and mailed or hand-delivered to: President's Commission on the United States Postal Service, 1120 Vermont Avenue, NW., Suite 971, Washington, DC 20005.
3. Typewritten statements may be mailed or hand-delivered to: President's Commission on the United States Postal Service, 1120 Vermont Avenue, NW., Suite 971, Washington, DC 20005.

June 19, 2003 -- The Denver Post has reported that "Western Union has agents in 195 countries. It wants Iraq as the 196th. The Greenwood Village company is in discussions with the Treasury Department to provide money-transfer services in the war-torn country. Western Union, a subsidiary of First Data Corp., typically partners with a bank or postal service when it enters a country, but in some cases the company will turn to independent operators."

June 19, 2003 -- The Fairfield Ledger has reported that "a Fairfield company has postage stamps for sale, but not the 37-cent kind. ArtSelect Inc., founded in 1998, has entered into a licensing agreement with the United States Postal Service to market artwork from postage stamps and sell the custom framed pieces, which range in price from $50 to $400, on a Web site, postalartgallery.com.

June 19, 2003 -- The Federal Times has reported that "the Office of Personnel Management on June 16 approved early retirements for thousands of eligible members of the American Postal Workers Union. About 58,000 of the APWU's 370,000 members will be eligible to take early retirement, which was negotiated in December as part of the union's contract extension. Under the extension, all members who meet the requirements will be allowed to take early retirement by the end of the fiscal year if they wish. Pat Donahoe, chief operating officer for the Postal Service, anticipates that about 3,000 union members will take the early out."

June 19, 2003 -- Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE) has introduced his postal legislative reform bill. The legislation, the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2003, would force the Postal Service to concentrate solely on what it does best -processing and delivering mail to all Americans. It would begin the process of developing a modern rate system for pricing Postal Service products, while also creating a strong regulatory body to ensure that the Postal Service competes fairly with other national mail carriers. The bill further aims to strengthen existing service standards for the Postal Service's many products.

June 19, 2003 -- The Journal of Commerce has reported that "DHL Danzas Air & Ocean on Wednesday said it had acquired the remaining shares of Corporacion Cormar Sociedad Anonima, a Central American transport and logistics specialist, in order to build operations across the region and achieve synergies for the DHL Group. DHL Danzas Air & Ocean will acquire the remaining 65 percent of Cormar shares from the longstanding senior management and outside shareholders that are also customers of Cormar."

June 18, 2003 -- The New York Times has reported that advertising industry guru, "Robert J. Coen, who has been tracking ad trends since the Truman administration, revised downward his prediction for American ad spending this year at a presentation in Midtown Manhattan. The change, attributed partly to sluggish interest from local advertisers in certain media outlets, including newspapers, was the second time in six months that Mr. Coen, senior vice president and forecasting director at Universal McCann in New York, had reduced his estimate for 2003."

June 18, 2003 -- Eyefortransport.com has reported that "TNT Express launched a road connection with Berlin, which will allow it to shorten the time of parcel delivery by 24 hours and to offer the so called Next Day service to the clients in most European countries."

June 18, 2003 -- The Fresno Bee has reported that "federal postal inspectors who fanned out across five states in a crackdown on pilfered mail and identity theft announced more than 100 arrests Tues Central and Northern California."

June 18, 2003 -- Japan Today has reported that "Japan Post President Masaharu Ikuta said Tuesday the postal public corporation will launch special services at designated post offices or in selected areas to upgrade its operations. The project will be implemented in the fields of information technology IT services and others under a Japan Post May action plan."

June 18, 2003 -- DM News has reported that "a New York law prohibiting cigarette sales via the Internet or mail order to state residents takes effect today, barring last-minute legal action to delay it. The law was enacted in 2000 but delayed following a lawsuit by the tobacco industry."

June 18, 2003 -- The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner has reported that "Sen. Ted Stevens has once again convinced his U.S. Senate colleagues to allow foreign air carriers to switch their cargo to other companies' planes in Alaska, but the provision still needs House approval. Stevens, speaking with Alaska reporters last week, said he thinks his amendment could save up to 15 percent of the cargo business at his namesake airport in Anchorage. The Senate bill, at Stevens' request, also directs the DOT to ban airlines that are under the "actual or effective" control of foreign owners. The language is designed to block companies such as DHL Airways. The company, while technically owned by American citizens, is effectively controlled by the German postal monopoly Duetsche Post, Stevens argues."

June 18, 2003 -- VNUNet has reported that "the UK's ecommerce minister Stephen Timms has been give the additional responsibilities of energy and postal services, prompting a mixed reaction from business and IT groups. Timms has been ecommerce minister since May last year, and is taking on the extra duties following the retirement of former energy minister Brian Wilson last week. IT and business organisations have given a mixed reaction to the news, some worrying that the adoption of ecommerce in the UK could suffer."

June 18, 2003 -- Online.ie (Ireland) has reported that "a huge backlog of mail remained undelivered in a Cork town yesterday as a dispute between An Post and the Communications Workers Union remained deadlocked Counter services resumed yesterday at strike-hit post offices throughout the country but the CWU warned an impasse in Midleton, Co Cork, was likely to continue. Both sides are in dispute over the conversion of the east Cork town's branch office to a sub-office."

June 18, 2003 -- According to the Financial Times, "the Postal Savings Service Co., an affiliate of the Vietnam Post & Telecommunications Corp. (VNPT), on June 16 launched individual payment and money transfer services through savings accounts opened in its postal offices in 12 cities and provinces, according to an official from VNPT."

June 18, 2003 -- QAS, the international leader in address management software, has released QuickAdd ress Batch 3.0, the latest version of its address data cleansing software. QuickAddress Batch 3.0 validates addresses in a customer or prospect database against the latest official U.S. Postal Service (USPS) records. Invalid, duplicate, or incorrectly formatted addresses are identified, and can be separated for verification while clean addresses remain in use. The product also can perform regular clean-ups, to ensure long-term address data viability.

June 18, 2003 -- The Arizona Republic has reported that "for more than a decade, Phoenix has led the country in mailbox theft. Now the high theft rate is getting special attention from the U.S. Postal Service in its attempts to curb the crime. After two years of work and more than $7 million in equipment and manpower, the Postal Service debuted its new high-security cluster mailbox at a press conference Tuesday in Phoenix. The new boxes look like the old ones on the outside but weigh almost 280 pounds and are reinforced with additional locks and tougher metal. There are fewer places to pry them open."

June 18, 2003 -- Rediff (India) has reported that "courier rates in the country may be hiked by 35-40 per cent within 15 days following imposition of 67 per cent on-board courier rates by domestic airlines, the apex organisation of courier companies said. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Tushar Jani, chairman of the Express Industry Council, said that if courier rates were not increased, the industry would suffer huge losses which would retard its growth, leading to closure of operations."

June 18, 2003 -- CEP News (Courier-Express-Postal) has reported that:

• According to information gleaned by the CEP News France's La Poste is not going to become involved with the Greek post Elta after all. Negotiations, which had been held since the spring of 2002, were discontinued without result. The aim of creating an alliance between post companies in southern Europe, which La Poste has pursued since 2000, appears to have failed permanently.
• Germany's Deutsche Post intends to lay off staff abroad only, according to its chairman Mr Klaus Zumwinkel. In an interview with the daily 'Bild am Sonntag' (15.6) Mr Zumwinkel denied that redundancies were planned in Germany. 'We are not going to dismiss anybody but will use the natural staff fluctuation of around 5% to reduce our workforce', said Mr Zumwinkel.
• According to the Baltic News Service the Latvian national post has encountered serious difficulties while trying to put into practice the requirements ensuing from the country's EU accession. So far, Latvijas Pasts had only managed to meet around 40% of the requirements contained in the treaty signed with the EU in 1998. In addition, Latvijas Pasts could be facing competition from the Estonian post, which has announced its intention of opening branches in Latvia.
• Pan Nordic Logistics (PNL), the joint parcel and express venture between the Danish and Norwegian posts, suffered losses during the financial year 2002.
• TNT Express has introduced a new temperature-controlled service for customers from the pharmaceutical industry. 'Medpak Thermo' is suitable for temperature sensitive diagnostic samples, which need to be transported e.g. between laboratories and biomedical research institutes, where new drugs are developed.
• The German parcel service pickpackpost based in Aachen, which came under heavy criticism lately for unreliability and bad business practice, is using an unusual approach to gain new service partners. pickpackpost intends to sell licenses for its 1,356 parcel shops on e-Bay, the Internet auction site, and is asking a price of 299 euros per license. The buyer will get a nondescript territory protection, a scanner worth 50 euros as well as parcel stamps apparently worth 2,100 euros on a sale or return basis.
• For the first time representatives of the US trade union Teamsters met with trade unionists representing UPS and DHL employees in Germany, Belgium, Britain and the Netherlands last week. Labelled as a workshop, the meeting aimed to increase knowledge and understanding of industrial legislation and conditions in different countries as well as to gain an insight into what the wage contracts entail in different countries.

CEP News is without a doubt one of the best newsletters you can find that focuses on the courier, express, and postal market. If you don't get it, when it comes to the CEP business worldwide, you REALLY won't "get it." For more information on a subscription to CEP News, contact the publisher.

June 18, 2003 -- As Traffic World has noted, "a more effective returns solution generates revenue, scores points with customers and provides valuable information Reverse logistics is no longer an afterthought as companies discover gold in the mountains of returned products at the back end of supply chains."

June 18, 2003 -- The National Association of Postmasters of the U.S. has reported that "the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, by a unanimous voice vote, favorably reported to the full Senate S. 678, the “Postmaster Equity Act.” The bill was amended to reflect the language of the House version, H.R. 2249. The House Government Reform Committee is scheduled to consider H.R. 2249 on Thursday."

June 18, 2003 -- The XML Cover Pages has reported that "a communique from Joe Lubenow describes the publication of International Postal Address Components and Templates by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) as Standard S42-1. The specification had been approved by the UPU Standards Board for further testing in November, 2002. As summarized in Lubenow's overview document, the UPU address standard defines elements, address templates, and rendition instructions."

June 18, 2003 -- ABC News has reported that "the U.S. Postal Service wants to make sure your identity isn't stolen. Operation Mail Safe is a multi-state crackdown on mail theft and it's byproduct, identity theft." See also the Sacramento Bee.

June 18, 2003 -- According to Les Echos (France), "CSMP, the French press distribution regulator, has said that newspaper publishers are concerned about their relationship with French post office La Poste. The publishers want the government not to reduce the subsides provided to La Poste for 2004. The rate for the distribution of newspapers is to increase by 3.7 per cent from July 1."

June 18, 2003 -- The Independent (U.K.) has reported that "the Royal Mail is speeding up the closure of 3,000 urban post offices by a year. The programme had been due to end in December 2005 but is now being brought forward 12 months to reduce the uncertainty facing sub- postmasters, said Royal Mail's chairman Allan Leighton. He also announced plans to sell more financial services in post offices, including personal loans and life insurance."

June 18, 2003 -- It is with great sadness that we note that the Contra Costa Timesf has reported that "community activist and longtime U.S. Postal Service spokesman Dan De Miglio has died. His wife, Joan De Miglio, found him dead Monday morning in their Pittsburg home. He was 56. De Miglio was an employee of the postal service for 33 years, and he eventually became spokesman for the service's East Bay region." Danny was one of the finest people you could ever know. He'll be missed.

June 18, 2003 -- The Journal of Commerce has reported that "DHL Danzas Air & Ocean laid off approximately 50 salespeople, including support personnel, in what a spokeswoman described as 'part of our ongoing effort to align our costs with the level of business.'"

June 17, 2003 -- The Institut D'economie Insustrielle (IDEI), and the University of Toulouse (France) has issued a call for papers for its third conference on "Regulation, Competition And Universal Service In The Postal Sector " Theconference will be held on November 13-14, 2003 and is sponsored  by the French postal service, La Poste. The conference will focus on issues pertaining to: industrial economics and econometrics in postal sector; competition policy in a liberalized postal sector; cost of universal service and universal service fund; universal service and competition; and price regulation in the postal sector.

June 17, 2003 -- The USPS has announced in the Federal Register the availability of an In-Person Proofing at Post Offices (IPP) Program to support the activities of U.S. Certificate Authorities and government organizations.

June 17, 2003 -- Le Monde (France) has reported that "he French government is soon expected to address the issue of reform at national energy groups EDF and GDF and national postal services group La Poste, even while the debate over pensions continues to rage at state-owned transport groups SNCF and RATP. The government does not seem to have reached a firm decision over whether it will change the statutes of EDF and GDF; although it has announced the move, it has postponed it on numerous occasions. Neither has it made an announcement on whether the sister energy companies will merge. As for La Poste, Senator Gerard Larcher states in a report made public yesterday that no reform of pensions at the group would be 'fatal'. On the other hand, he does not deal with the question of a change in statute, leading some to think that the government may have decided not to open the group's capital."

June 17, 2003 -- FedEx Freight East received the first place award in the American Trucking Associations (ATA) National Fleet Safety Contest in the line haul carrier category for over 100 million miles of operation. This is the third consecutive year that FedEx Freight East has won this award, which is based on the lowest accident rate per million vehicle miles of operation. FedEx Freight is a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. 

June 17, 2003 -- The Irish Independent has reported that "the Irish GPO was shut down yesterday after unofficial action by An Post staff. The industrial action by counter staff left thousands of unemployed people without their dole payments. More than 20 post offices nationwide, including the GPO, were forced toclose. An Post said yesterday that those involved in the action would have their pay docked. But the Communications Workers' Union (CWU) warned of further action if that happened. Most of the strikers are expected to return to their jobs today."

June 17, 2003 -- PostalNews.com has reported that "in a letter dated June 12, 2003, U.S. Postal Service Labor Relations Manager Doug A. Tulino notified the U.S. Postal Police Officer's union of plans to close police operations in the following six cities: Birmingham, AL; Buffalo, NY; Denver, CO; Hartford, CT; Jacksonville, FL; Seattle, WA. Despite increased terrorist threats targeted at government property and employees; and despite the Anthrax attacks of 2001, Tulino said the reason for the closures is that a review has shown the presence of armed postal police is no longer warranted at these facilities."

June 17, 2003 -- Direct has reported that "a reform bill that would also make it easier for the U.S. Postal Service to set prices and close facilities is expected to be introduced later this week by Sen. Thomas Carper, (D-DE)."

June 17, 2003 -- China Business Weekly has reported that:

• DHL, one of the four foreign express couriers operating on the Chinese mainland, is offering a brand-new service - overnight delivery for customers in Shanghai. DHL China believes the new service will help DHL obtain larger market share in the enormous and fast-growing market.

• Dutch logistics giant TPG Post has cleared the way for closer links with the State Postal Bureau - days after TNT Co Ltd severed links with Sinotrans. Experts predict the move will increase its competitiveness with other overseas firms in the logistics sector.

June 17, 2003 -- The Reading Chronicle (U.K.) has reported that "Reading West MP Martin Salter has delivered a stinging attack on the Royal Mail for its decision to stop using the railways for carrying post. The postal service has declared air and road as cheaper options for the 82 million items it dispatches every day, after it failed to negotiate a deal with freight operator English, Welsh and Scottish Railways (EWS). Royal Mail plans to sell off its network of 49 mail trains, wrapping up the service by the end of March next year."

June 17, 2003 -- Die Welt (Germany) has reported that "Deutsche Post, the German postal service operator, has not ruled out further job cuts abroad. However, management has assured that no redundancies are to take place in Germany, where any staff reductions carried out would take place through natural wastage. The company is also reported to be planning further acquisitions."

June 17, 2003 -- AllAfrica.com has reported that "the Postal Corporation of Kenya has been urged to take its services to the rural areas where the majority of Kenyans live. Transport and Communications Minister John Michuki said many postal organisations in Africa have failed to take services to rural areas, which now seriously lack access to communication. The continent lacks strong organisations to spearhead the development of the communications sector. Michuki said development of the communications sector is key to economic and social wellbeing of the people."

June 17, 2003 -- According to Louisville's Bu siness First, "United Parcel Service Inc. is giving up leased warehouse space at Jefferson Riverport International in a move to consolidate warehousing and accounting functions in its Supply Chain Solutions division." Hey, wait a minute! You mean they're doing this without Congress' blessing? No "base closing" commission? No Postal Rate Commission? Wow! What a concept!

June 17, 2003 -- The Journal Star has reported that "residents have lost another skirmish in the long battle to keep their post office open.The U.S. Postal Service told customers in a letter Thursday that they plan to suspend operation at Carleton's post office at the close of business Aug. 1. Mail will then be delivered to clustered outdoor mailbox in town by a rural carrier from Shickley, nine miles away. The suspension is because of inadequate post office facilities and lack of a current suitable alternative site in this Thayer County community."

June 17, 2003 -- As Federal Times has noted, "the Office of Personnel Management June 13 cleared one of the final barriers to early outs promised to American Postal Workers Union members when it published new early retirement regulations in the Federal Register. OPM now must consider the U.S. Postal Service’s Jan. 23 request to offer early outs. The request had been on hold pending publication of the new regulations. The Office of Management and Budget gave final approval for the regulations before their publication."

June 17, 2003 -- PMG Jack Potter has announced the selection of Jerry Whalen, a former Xerox executive, to serve as Vice President of Sales. In his new position, Whalen has responsibility for all aspects of Sales for the Postal Service. Whalen has nearly 30 years of sales experience. He served in a variety of senior management positions during his 25-year career with Xerox where he started as a sales trainee in 1975 and eventually rose to Vice President for National Sales Operations, Consumable Supplies Business. Throughout his career, Whalen has been responsible for multi-channel distributions including direct and indirect sales and telemarketing.

June 17, 2003 -- SmartMail Services® (www.smartmail.com) is pleased to announce its acquisition of Drop Ship Express (www.dropshipexpress.com), a Minneapolis-based mail and parcel delivery company. The newly formed organization boasts greater than $200 million of revenue and 1,100 employees working from 22 processing centers nationwide. The merger expands SmartMail's Workshare Partnership with the United States Postal Service (USPS) ensuring deliveries travel through a seamless nationwide delivery network. The company's service offering now includes both air expedited and ground delivery services for seven USPS products: Flats, Bound Printed Matter, Parcel Select, Media Mail, Irregular and Machinable parcels.

June 16, 2003 -- The Nation (Nigeria) has reported that "no fewer than eight senior officials of the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) have been elevated to their next rank, as the organisation plans to computerise its services to enhance service delivery."

June 16, 2003 -- The Telegraph (India) has reported that "UPS Jetair Pvt Ltd --  a 60:40 joint venture between United Parcel Service (UPS) and Jetair -- is set to introduce an electronic payment facility that promises to simplify financial transactions in international trade. The trade finance facility called Exchange Collect was developed by UPS — the largest package distribution company in the world. It reduces the risks of dealing with new or unknown customers, and ensures that an exporter receives payment within 10 days of delivery."

June 16, 2003 -- RTE (Ireland) has reported that "An Post has said there is widespread disruption to postal services around the country because of unofficial industrial action by Post Office counter staff. It said most sub-Post Offices are open for business as normal, but a number of Post Offices are closed."

June 16, 2003 -- The Evening Telegraph (U.K.) has reported that "the Telecommunications Council of the EU, mainly postal and telecoms ministers from member countries, is meeting today to agree a Community-wide plan for the liberalisation of delivery services. Walking wounded: The Royal Mail is under pressure from all sides It is expected to restrict the monopoly power of the current state postal organisations in most countries. Sweden has liberalised already and the UK and Finland have started introducing a system of licences; the rest are still tightly controlled."

June 16, 2003 -- The Herald Sun has reported that "Britain's Royal Mail is to make extra vans available to deliver half a million copies of the new Harry Potter novel next weekend, amid fears it could weigh heavily on the country's postmen. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the latest edition of a massively popular series, is to be published on Saturday and weighs in at a hefty one kilogramme. Given that safety regulations allow British postmen to carry a maximum of 16 kilograms, officials are making plans to make sure every book reaches its destination without postal workers suffering damage to their backs." See also Ananova (U.K.) and the BBC.

June 15, 2003 -- The Manila Bulletin (Philippines) has reported that "undeterred by the failure to dispose of the former site of International School, the Department of Finance (DoF) is again trying its luck to place in the auction block Philippine Postal Corporation and Philippine National Construction Corporation (PNCC)."

June 14, 2003 -- The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner has reported that "Secluded Acres is a little too secluded, according to the U.S. Postal Service. Postal records indicate the tiny, landlocked community on the edge of Fort Wainwright doesn't exist. Forty-two residents disagree, however, and they are demanding mail delivery even though Postal Service officials say they cannot cross government-owned military roads."

June 14, 2003 -- The Montreal Gazette has reported that "Canada Post Corp. is offering refunds to 140,000 consumers who bought a $9.95 kit promising free Internet for life through its postal outlets in 2001. The offer, publicized through ads in newspapers across Canada yesterday, comes as a Quebec Superior Court judge is about to set the start date for a class- action suit involving Canada Post and co-defendant CyberSurf Corp. and about 35,000 Quebec plaintiffs."

June 14, 2003 -- The Sioux City Journal has reported that "neither snow, nor sleet nor dark of night shall keep mail carriers from their appointed rounds -- except perhaps for construction trucks hauling chunks of concrete on Jackson Street. At Friday morning's mayor's press conference, city officials announced the U.S. Postal Service said it won't deliver the mail to houses on Jackson Street during the first phase of the water main and street reconstruction project. The city said the post office will start delivering mail Monday to temporary boxes at 34th and 36th streets. 'That's insane,' City Manager Paul Eckert said Friday afternoon. 'We can easily meet the concern about the safety of the mail carriers. To ask 60 residents to go through the same construction area only causes more risks to those people.' Sioux City Postmaster Virginia Rohrback roared back. She said the city is making the post office look like the bad guys. The issue, she said, is safety."

June 14, 2003 -- According to Barron's, "the bullish case on Deutsche Post, which is still nearly 70% controlled by the government, is part restructuring and part a play on businesses that are growing much faster than the letters monopoly, namely, express delivery and logistics, about 50% of the €40 billion in sales.

June 14, 2003 -- Investments & Pensions Europe has reported that "the Swiss post office workers’ pension scheme says it lost 3.1% in its first year – though it says there is no cause for concern at the moment. Established in January last year, the fund is one of Switzerland’s largest, with 53,000 contributing and 20,000 pensioners. The loss of 3.1% or 860 million Swiss francs (557 million euros) is in line with losses of many other pension funds, says a spokesman, and is a 'satisfactory result given the difficult climate.'"

June 14, 2003 -- The Irish Examiner has reported that "a nationwide post office strike is looming after An Post workers in Cork launched an unofficial protest yesterday."

June 14, 2003 -- The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reported that "until recently, UPS stock had always commanded a premium over its rivals. Ever since the world's largest transportation company went public in 1999, its shares have consistently sold for higher prices -- and at a substantially higher price/earnings ratio -- than industry competitors'. In recent weeks, however, FedEx has moved ahead of UPS in share price and closed the price/earnings gap, a sign that investors believe Memphis-based FedEx will keep taking packages away from UPS in its core domestic ground delivery business."

June 13, 2003 -- CNET News has reported that "in a significant jump from the previous year, UPS has been ranked No. 20 on the 2003 list of "Best Places to Work in IT" by Computerworld magazine. The ranking, up from No. 60 in 2002, cited UPS for increased employee satisfaction, proper training and development and the use of modern technologies that offer employees exciting challenges. The magazine published the results in its June 9 issue."

June 13, 2003 -- Business World (Ireland) has reported that "An Post must manage its business efficiently and not seek price increases in difficult conditions, according to the communications watchdog. 'It is not desirable that An Post should automatically seek price increases in response to adverse market conditions,' ComReg said. The regulator was responding to a proposal from the group to increase in the price of a basic stamp from 41c to 48c."

June 13, 2003 -- Nextel Communications Inc., Motorola, Inc. and Symbol Technologies, Inc.  have announced the availability of the first bar code scanner attachment for mobile phones. The Symbol PSM20i allows mobile workers to use their phones to collect information wirelessly and in real time. This solution combines the accuracy and reliability in laser-based bar code scanning with the extensive voice, data and application capabilities of Nextel's Java(TM) technology-enabled phones from Motorola. Transformed by Nextel's wireless data network into a robust tool for mobile connectivity, the Symbol PSM20i bar code scanner attachment provides workers with the information and business support systems they need to operate efficiently.

June 13, 2003 -- Motorola, Inc., Nextel Communications Inc. and Creditel haveannounced they are offering Creditel's PowerSwipe device and its secure end-to-end payment processing solution for use on Nextel's national packet data network. The point-of-sale (POS) device will make it fast, easy and affordable for mobile businesses including retailers, taxi drivers and delivery personnel to securely process credit cards directly from the Java(TM) technology-enabled Motorola i50sx, i55sr, i58sr, i85s and i88s handsets for Nextel.

June 13, 2003 -- Traffic World has reported that "an increase in the limit on foreign ownership in U.S. airlines may be offered as rider to FAA bill For the present, at least, the Department of Defense has muted its long-standing opposition to a change in the limit on foreign ownership in U.S. airlines. Comments opposing the change had been drafted and were ready to be sent to Congress when a DOD deputy undersecretary reportedly squashed the opposition. The foreign ownership limit is now 25 percent. In the all-cargo world, United Parcel Service and FedEx are busy challenging the corporate citizenship of DHL Airways.. But UPS spokesman David Bolger said the foreign ownership limit change to the 49 percent level would not make a difference to his company." No, but it would make a difference to DHL.

June 13, 2003 -- According to Dow Jones, "Public transportation services returned to near normal in most French cities Friday as protests against the governments pension reform plans lost steam. Union leaders, however, pledged that relief would only be temporary, with several calling for a new day of nationwide strikes and demonstrations on Thursday. The government says the plan is needed to compensate for France's growing number of retirees, and has warned that the pension system will collapse without the changes. Workers say the plan is the first step in a process that would eventually destroy the pension system. Transport workers and garbage collectors were joined by teachers, postal workers, air traffic controllers and a long list of other state employees." Vive la poste!

June 13, 2003 -- The Times of Malta has reported that "Maltapost has published a customer care brochure listing procedures how clients may enquire about the company's services, as well as lodge a complaint. The brochure also incorporates a customer enquiry form with a step by step guideline on how it is to be completed. It sets standards for Maltapost in respect of the service being provided and stipulates that the company is committed to acknowledge receipt of any enquiries within two days of receipt of the completed form."

June 13, 2003 -- The Office of Personnel Management has published in the Federal Register interim voluntary early retirement authority (VERA) regulations. These regulations implement the VERA provisions of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which apply to most executive branch agencies. These interim regulations explain how an agency requests authority from OPM to offer voluntary early retirement to its employees. This provision would pertain to the early-out offer for postal clerks.

June 13, 2003 -- Traffic World has reported that "DHL Worldwide Express officials are circulating a white paper on Capitol Hill that lays out their case for defending DHL Airways' corporate U.S. citizenship. Although the five-page report does not specifically mention DHL Airways and the citizenship review under way at the Department of Transportation by DOT Chief Administrative Law Judge Ronnie Yoder, the paper's late May release coincided with when the case began to receive public attention. The paper paints parcel delivery competitors FedEx and United Parcel Service as protective bullies, while portraying DHL Worldwide Express as a bit player on the U.S. delivery scene. UPS and FedEx officials counter that while DHL may possess only a small share of the U.S. market, the company is far larger and more competitive around the globe than it is here."

June 13, 2003 -- Parcel Direct has strengthened its executive-level management with the appointment of two vice presidents who will help oversee the growth of the burgeoning parcel expediting company. Don Terkel has been named Vice President of Operations, and Jeff Duening has been appointed Vice President of Sales. In these newly created positions, both Mr. Terkel and Mr. Duening will report directly to Dave Riebe, President of Parcel Direct, from Parcel Direct headquarters in New Berlin, Wis. For More Information Contact: Claire Ho, Quad/Graphics 414-566-2955.

June 13, 2003 -- The Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA) mandated, in 1997, that the Postal Service publish a 5- year plan outlining its goals, targets, and strategies, and that the Postal Service update and revise its 5-year plan at intervals of no less than 3 years. In so doing, GPRA states that the Postal Service must, as an aspect of its strategic planning process, solicit and consider the ideas, knowledge, and opinions of those potentially affected by or interested in its 2004-2008 Five-Year Strategic Plan. This notice, therefore, asks for public comment concerning the development and drafting of the Postal Service's 2004-2008 Five-Year Strategic Plan. Comments must be received by July 18, 2003.

June 13, 2003 -- The Financial Times has reported that "The head of the sub-postmasters' union yesterday criticised a £3m pension deal for John Roberts, former chief executive of Royal Mail. Mr Roberts, who retired in December, will get an annual payment of about £150,000, which the Royal Mail will account for as worth about £3m. After a career of 35 years with the postal group, his final years were overshadowed by mounting losses and a failed name change to Consignia. Colin Baker, general secretary of the National Federation of Subpost- masters, said: "Is this a just reward for long service or is it, as we've seen in other industries, a considerable amount of money for somebody who has presided over an industry in decline?" Royal Mail said Mr Roberts was entitled to two-thirds of his final salary.

June 13, 2003 -- Global Business Services Inc., a rapidly growing retail network of franchise and company-owned stores in the retail postal and business services industry, today reported total revenues increased 1 percent, and franchise sales and royalties increased 172 percent during the three and nine months ended March 31, 2003.

June 12, 2003 -- Les Echos (France) has reported that "French post office La Poste has issued a 580m-euro loan which will mature in 20 years. The bond issue was carried out with the help of ABN Amro, Barclays Capital and Natexis Banques Populaires. They will mature on 26 June 2023."

June 12, 2003 -- Silicon Graphics, Inc., the world leader in high-performance computing, visualization and storage solutions, has selected UPS Supply Chain Solutions as its third-party logistics provider for service parts logistics in Asia and Latin America. SGI already relies on UPS Supply Chain Solutions for service parts logistics in North America.

June 12, 2003 -- Africast.com has reported that "the inhabitants of Somalia will once again be able to correspond by mail with the rest of the world as the war-wracked country has rejoined the Pan African Postal Union, officials said on Thursday at a gathering of the body. The Postal Union welcomed a delegation Somalia's Transitional National Government to its 22nd Administration Council meeting, which opened on Wednesday in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa."

June 12, 2003 -- St.Augustine.com has reported that "Cuban-born Father Felix Varela, a reformer, philosopher and scientist who spent his youth in St. Augustine and died there in 1853, moved closer to being declared a saint Wednesday. The Archdiocese of Havana in 1997 sent the results of its investigation to Rome, which requested additional material from the United States, where Varela had worked for 30 years. That same year, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp with Father Varela's likeness."

June 12, 2003 -- IDG's Computerworld, the newsweekly for information technology (IT) management, is seeking outstanding corporate technology executives and managers for its fifth annual Premier 100 IT Leaders awards program. The distinguished list of executives honored at the 2003 Premier 100 IT Leaders conference includes: Robert Otto, vice president of IT, U.S. Postal Service.

June 12, 2003 -- Bloomberg has reported that "Japanese banks face a rival in the mutual-fund business, less than five years after the government let them sell funds. The newcomer: Japan Post, the state-owned postal agency that holds a sixth of the nation's 1,400 trillion yen ($11.9 trillion) in personal savings. Banks and brokerages may lose business when Japan Post starts selling funds, as it expects to do by March."

June 12, 2003 -- According to postal guru Murray Comarow, "Presidential commissions are usually established when the normative political process fails to deal with a significant public issue. That has certainly been the case with respect to postal reform. Commissions are expected to set aside their political biases and personal preferences and examine the evidence for or against change with scrupulous objectivity. Members' reputations and the fact that they have no stake in the outcome lends credibility, the gold standard in searching for the optimum approach in resolving complex social/political conundrums."

June 12, 2003 -- Be sure to check out and read Rick Geddes' piece in The American Enterprise magazine on "Why We Need Serious Postal Reform." Subscription information can be obtained by calling 1-888-295-9007 or by checking out http://www.TAEmag.com.

June 12, 2003 -- The Alliance of Nonprofit Mailers has made the following predictions about the postal Presidential Commission's recommendations:

We expect the Commission to recommend some modest (and some significant) changes to the collective bargaining process;changes to allow a mediator in contract disputes to assume the role of an arbitrator after mediation attempts have stalled: changes to add another step to the arbitration process that would allow parties an opportunity for final negotiations after the arbitration decision is announced: inclusion of other benefits -- like the costs associated with postal retiree benefits, in the postal labor negotiation process;new approaches to Pay for Performance measures for postal workers and senior postal officials: refinements in the current process used in filing employee grievances.

The Commission is also likely to recommend new processes for introducing and testing new postal products that would not require advance approval by the PRC, but only approval by the USPS Board of Governors with after-the-fact review by the PRC. We also expect recommendations that would create deeper rate differences for standard-shaped vs. nonstandard-shaped pieces. It is likely that the Commission will offer substantial proposals to alter the current ratesetting process. While we can't go so far as to suggest that the Commission propose a version of annual indexed rate increases, we do believe that the panel will alter the role of the PRC to evaluate the validity and fairness of rate increases after the increases are implemented. We also believe that the Commission will support a "bottom-up," activity-based approach to setting rates that will allow rates to be de-averaged and unbundled to better reflect actual costs associated with processing and delivery.

Well...there you have it, folks.. The gospel from "on-high." (

June 12, 2003 -- The U.S. Postal Service has reported that "the USPS Board of Governors has given the nod to S3, Sales Support Solution a software system that replaces and consolidates five older, often incompatible systems into one that will improve USPS's ability to retain customers and generate revenue. S3 will be the one-stop resource for customer information maintenance, forecasting, lead generation, account acquisition and management and more. Also included in S3 will be sales planning, sales analysis and reporting, and sales performance measurement. 'Using Sales Support Solution, the Sales organization will not only improve its ability to develop and deliver business solutions, the system will help us better understand customer needs critical in the development of corporate strategy,' said Chief Marketing Officer Anita Bizzotto. Sales and Information Technology are working together to launch S3 in April 2004."

June 12, 2003 -- The Japan Times has reported that "despite the current volatility of the economic climate, United Parcel Service Inc., the world's largest package delivery company, will actively expand operations in Japan, according to the head of UPS Asia Pacific Region."

June 12, 2003 -- China Southern Airlines, the largest airline in The People's Republic of China, is pleased to announce that China Postal Airlines' revenue has reached record highs -- even during the peak of the SARS crisis in China. Nearly one year ago to date here in Beijing, China Southern Airlines inked a new agreement with the China State Post Bureau which secured China Southern's position as the premier cargo, mail and overnight mail carrier in China as it injected RMB 150 Million ($18M US) in cash and acquired 49% of the entire equity capital of China Postal Airlines.

June 12, 2003 -- IsraelNationalNews.com has reported that "the postal authority will be cutting back on its services in the Jerusalem and surrounding areas, in protest over impending privatization of certain postal services. As a result of the partial strike, local mail deliveries will be made once every two weeks, rather than every day, until further notice."

June 12, 2003 -- The Russia Journal has reported that "The Russian government approved a plan for developing the country's postal service Tuesday, Russia's Communications and IT Ministry said. The government required the Communications and IT Ministry to present a detailed version of the concept as well as a plan for its implementation by September 1."

June 12, 2003 -- The International Herald Tribune has reported that "tens of thousands of workers demonstrated through France on Tuesday to protest a government pension plan that would force them to work longer to qualify for full benefits. Transport workers joined garbage collectors, teachers and postal workers.

June 12, 2003 -- The Gazette (Canada) has reported that "the last of the 48,000 members of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers are to vote this week on giving a strike mandate to their leaders, but both sides say they hope a work stoppage can be avoided. By common accord, contract talks were halted June 1 to allow mail delivery personnel, drivers and inside workers to vote across the country."

June 12, 2003 -- According to Editor & Publisher, "online advertising is starting to grow up and become much more sophisticated. It's now possible for advertisers at some news sites to target their messages finely -- say, serving up an ad only to women. That's not possible in any traditional media (with the possible exception of direct mail)."

June 12, 2003 -- The Times (U.K.) has reported that "John Roberts, former chief executive of Royal Mail, is to receive a pension worth 3 million pounds, the state-owned group will reveal later this month. Mr Roberts, who retired early at the age of 58 from the loss-making group, will be handed an annual payment of more than 150,000 pounds. However, the postal group will account for the pension as worth about 3 million pounds the cost of such a pension on the open market."

June 12, 2003 -- The U.S. Postal Service has published in the Federal Register "a final rule that adopts revisions to the Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) that clarify when it is permissible to use Delivery Confirmation service or Signature Confirmation service with mailpieces claimed at First-Class Mail or Package Services rates. In particular, this final rule specifies that, for First-Class Mail and Package Services mailpieces, Delivery Confirmation service or Signature Confirmation service may be used only with parcels and not with letter- size mail or flat-size mail as defined by the Postal Service."

June 12, 2003 -- According to U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors Chairman David Fineman, the Postal Service is facing "an era of innovation."

June 12, 2003 -- Traffic World has reported that "a three-year "freight recession" has taken approximately 12,000 carriers and $10 billion in capacity out of the $462 billion trucking industry."

June 12, 2003 -- Dow Jones has reported that "Argentina's privatized utilities - already reeling from the recent recession and devaluation - are suddenly facing heightened scrutiny as government agencies move to review their contract agreements. State regulators of the country's mail service, sold off wholesale in 1998 to create the world's first fully privatized postal service, have cited Correo Argentino, the consortium now at its helm, for not fulfilling its contract obligations."

June 12, 2003 -- Brunei Direct has reported that Brunie Postmaster General Pengiran Haji Mohd Yakub said that "the postal services is still relevant despite facing stiff competition from modern day technology like e-mail and the mobile phone. He said however the postal services would continue to enhance the quality of its services. He said the postal services is taking on the challenge in other than improving the quality of services the department will also reduce cost. Although the Internet and other communication technology are providing more convenient ways of communication there are still customers who prefer to communicate by mail."

June 12, 2003 -- The Russia Journal has reported that "It will take no more than six days to deliver mail to any place in Russia by 2010, ITAR-TASS reported quoting a postal service development program to 2010 prepared for the government meeting and obtained by ITAR-TASS Monday. Within the same town, city or village, it will take one business day to deliver mail, according to the plan. Currently most mail is delivered within three weeks. To achieve the plan, developed by Russia's Telecommunications and IT Ministry, envisages introducing automatic mail sorting machines and other improvements and also proposes setting a unified tariff on postal money transfers. The ministry expects the total spending to upgrade postal service by 2010 at U.S. $350 million."

June 12, 2003 -- I.D. Systems, Inc., a provider of wireless asset management solutions, has announced that the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has ordered the company's Wireless Asset Net(TM) fleet tracking and management system for a fleet of industrial vehicles at the USPS Buffalo, New York, Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC). This is the eighth USPS facility to acquire the Wireless Asset Net system. The order for the Buffalo P&DC is valued at approximately $250,000, and system deployment is expected to occur this year.

June 11, 2003 -- CEP News (Courier-Express-Postal) has reported that:

• At last week's AGM of Deutsche Post AG CEO Mr Zumwinkel defended the company's expansion policy against criticism from some shareholders. 'In the US we are becoming a serious alternative to our main competitors' said Mr Zumwinkel with reference to the almost 1bn euros spent on acquiring the US express service Airborne, a deal which is due to be completed during the third quarter of this year. Mr Zumwinkel rejected reproaches from analysts, who expect Deutsche Post to remain dependent on profits from its letter business. He said that while currently almost 70% of the overall result consisted of profits from the letter segment, that figure would be reduced to 50% by 2005.
• According to the Danish daily 'Jyllands-Posten' (4.6) Post Danmark intends to give up its logistics business.
• Deutsche Post's parcel business appears to be heading for a plunge into the red yet again. Trade union sources claim that the post intends to transfer around 5,000 of today's 14,000 parcel delivery workers to the letter segment and, at the same time shift part of the delivery (code word: integrated delivery) to that area. The remaining 9,000 workers are to be transferred to other companies from 2004.
• A survey commissioned by United Parcel Service (UPS) concludes that consumers in Germany pay 8 euro cent too much for domestic postage stamps. A spokeswoman for Deutsche Post described the survey as yet another of many UPS attempts to produce some kind of evidence against the post. Considering that the letter postage rates had been established by Germany's Regulatory Authority for Telecommunications and Post (RegTP) it did not seem logical that the EU Commission should become involved in the matter once more.
• Jetpak, the courier and express subsidiary of Scandinavia's SAS, continues to aim for an expansion in Scandinavia.
• America's Airborne Express now offers customers a Tracking & Tracing feature as part of the Microsoft Office package.

CEP News is without a doubt one of the best newsletters you can find that focuses on the courier, express, and postal market in Europe. For more information on a subscription to CEP News, contact the publisher.

June 11, 2003 -- The National Association of Major Mail Users (NAMMU) has provided its members an update on the ongoing talks between Canada Post management and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.

June 11, 2003 -- European Voice has reported that:

• A Deutsche Post rival has sent a study to the European Commission backing allegations that the German firm's monopoly mail service is making profits it could use to maintain competitive advantage, it was revealed yesterday. The Commission said it had received the study from United Parcel Service, but declined to comment further.
• Adam Smith was probably not thinking about the express industry when he coined his famous four canons of taxation in 1776. Some finance ministries are plotting to red