Postal Strategies

This edited book includes original essays by prominent researchers and practitioners in the field of postal and delivery economics, originally presented at the 30th Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics held in Rimini, Italy, May 25–27, 2022. The central foci of the book are the role of digital platforms in the postal sector and the impact of vertically integrated firms in delivery markets. Other important topics include the regulation of parcels and their environmental footprint, in light of the innovations affecting the so-called last mile, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the postal sector, on both the global and local levels. Chapters also discuss traditional topics for postal and delivery sectors, including postal costs, the funding of Universal Service Obligation (USO) and the related role of Universal Service Providers. This book is a useful tool not only for graduate students and professors interested in postal and regulatory economics but also for postal administrations, consulting firms, and federal government departments.

This book addresses major issues facing postal and delivery services throughout the world. Worldwide, there is currently a considerable amount of interest in postal and delivery economics. The industry is reacting to a state of near crisis and is implementing different drastic changes. The European Commission and member States are still wrestling with the problem of how to implement entry liberalization into postal markets, how to address digital competition, and how to maintain the universal service obligation (USO). The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 in the U.S. has perhaps created and exacerbated the problems faced by USPS. Digitalisation, technological development and online platforms are strongly affecting both the way postal and delivery operators are managing their services as well as their role on the market. Strong emphasis was attributed to the assets of Postal Operators (POs) and their added value in the digital age as well as on new business strategies. This volume presents original essays by prominent researchers in the field, selected and edited from papers presented at this year’s 26th Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics held in Split, Croatia, from May 30- June 2, 2018.Topics addressed by this volume include quality of service, last mile solutions, and competition in the liberalized market. This book will be a useful tool not only for graduate students and professors, but also for postal administrations, consulting firms, and federal government departments.

This book examines the economics of the postal sector through three lenses: snapshot and trends, models, and opportunities. In the years to come, the Universal Postal Union plans to develop its role as a knowledge centre for the postal sector from these perspectives. At this time of radical transformation of the postal sector, it is important to understand how the sector has evolved historically, how it is connected with the economic system, and where it is heading. This book thus first presents a long-run view, focusing on incumbent operators over the last three decades, and then describes their development in the last five to ten years. It also offers a real-time picture based on daily “big postal data”, revealing one of the greatest opportunities for the sector in terms of forecasting and product design.

Worldwide, postal operators have been slow to address the threats from and opportunities created by electronic competition. The European Commission and member states are wrestling with these issues, while at the same time continuing to deal with the interrelated issues of implementing entry into postal markets and maintaining the universal service obligation. The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 in the U.S. exacerbated financial and managerial problems faced by USPS that result in part from electronic substitution for letter delivery. A major aim of this book is to examine policies to address postal operations in a digital world and ways in which postal operators might reinvent themselves to respond to threats and exploit opportunities. Potential opportunities examined include parcels, e-commerce, digital delivery, regulatory innovations and pricing. This book will be of interest to postal operators, regulatory commissions, consulting firms, competitors and customers, experts in the postal economics, law, and business, and those charged with the responsibility for designing and implementing postal sector policies. Researchers in regulatory economics, transportation technology and industrial organization will also find considerable food for thought in this volume.

Worldwide, postal and delivery economics has attracted considerable interest. Numerous questions have arisen, including the role of regulation, funding the Universal Service Obligation, postal reform in Europe, Asia and North America, the future of national postal operators, demand and pricing strategies, and the principles that should govern the introduction of competition. Collected here are responses to these questions in the form of 24 essays written by researchers, practitioners, and senior managers from throughout the world. This volume will have a broad appeal, with an audience ranging from practitioners in the express and delivery industry, national Postal Operators and managers, to economists, regulators, competition lawyers, marketers, scholars in economic regulation, and institutional libraries.

The postal sector is a multi-billion dollar set of activities that touches billions of lives daily and continues to be one of the world's largest employers. Until recently all Posts were monopolies owned by governments in order to maintain a universal postal service. However, in response to technological and international competition as well as public disenchantment with postal subsidies and inefficiencies, governments have embraced a range of new strategies. In The Politics of Postal Transformation Robert Campbell investigates and analyses the most important policy innovations in recent years as countries struggle to create a postal regime that matches domestic political expectations with international and technological realities. Through extensive interviews with numerous key government, regulatory, postal, and union officials in North America, Europe, and Australasia, he identifies four models or strategies, each reflecting particular national characteristics and ambitions: from privatization (Netherlands, Germany) and deregulation (Finland, Sweden, New Zealand) to increased national support (France) and mixed strategies (UK, Australia). Campbell's comparative analysis provides a backdrop for a set of recommendations for policy-makers and lays the foundation for informed speculation about future international postal developments and the possible domination of the system by a select group of postal behemoths.

In recent years, the postal sector has undergone radical changes, which have primarily been driven by operational and technological developments. Not only has the advent of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) added competition to the market, but it has also provided ample opportunity for the broadening and improvement of services and product range._x000D_ This book deals with the challenges faced by the postal sector in the digital age, and with the vast opportunities that technological advancements offer postal operators with regard to developing new business solutions and services tailored to the needs of their customers. It provides an analysis of these opportunities and identifies the ways in which postal operators might benefit from the digital age and new market requirements. The book is divided into three main parts: various digital dimensions; e-commerce challenges; and opportunities for partnership with governments. A final chapter discusses the developments described in the book and the views and ideas of the authors._x000D_ The book will be of interest to all those responsible for developing and running postal services, as well as to anyone affected by the changes which have already taken place or the possibilities opening up for new and improved services.