Tuesday, 3rd November 2009
Snail mail to get a facelift
Postal services play a vital role in modern commercial and social life, providing channels of communication between individuals, businesses, organisations and the government. The postal sector is a key part of the economy and the provision of high quality postal services is therefore crucial in underpinning national competitiveness. It is essential for the postal sector to ensure that customers, both business and residential, enjoy competitively priced, high quality postal services. In fact the Malta Communications Authority's (MCA) remit is to make sure that high quality service at affordable prices is at the forefront on Malta's postal services agenda.
My ministry has embarked on an extensive update of the existing postal services legislation in line with the EU Postal Directive and current market requirements. Last summer, a public consultative process was initiated to amend existing postal laws. Our vision is to minimise ministerial intervention and transfer functions to MCA to simplify the procedures while reducing existing time frames and administrative burdens.
In a nutshell, the proposed measures will be reforming the current cumbersome licensing procedures with the aim of simplifying them. This would be reducing the time for a licence to be granted to the prospective service provider. Furthermore, these measures will be facilitating the full liberalisation of the market by no later than December 31, 2012. I am confident this step will be opening the postal sector to increased competition with the resultant benefits to consumers.
Postal reforms taking place during the 21st century are increasingly being driven by the explosion of internet usage, the development of eCommerce and eGovernment. The increase in the take-up of eCommerce and eGovernment services has posed significant challenges to the postal sector.
Notwithstanding the consequential challenges, it has also generated greater demand for postal services and highlighted the importance of the postal sector despite the vast developments in the electronic world. Bulk mail, for example, is on the increase.
Postal services have to complete the very transactions initiated electronically, for example through delivery of goods purchased over the internet, renewal of vehicle licences online and so on. Consequently, a key objective is the promotion of a dynamic and flexible postal sector which will assist in the development of eBusiness services nationwide.
The challenge for the 21st century postal operator is to grasp the opportunities that exist by moving away from the historical "sell what we make" approach to providing a more consumer-centric service. This shift is expected to be further accentuated by the full market opening of the postal market in 2013, stimulating innovation and value for the consumer.
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Comments
Are 'O' levels no longer required by employees ?
I was referring to outbound deliveries i.e. if I sell a pair of shoes on the internet and need to ship it to somewhere in Europe the delivery cost would make it unattractive to anyone. This is not the case for packages delivered from Europe to Malta, possibly due to bulk rates, as you rightly pointed out. Courier services are even more expensive than Maltapost, so it is not an option unless you are selling high value goods.
I understand your point and the fact that currently the postal operator does not offer bulk rates, but if one were to compare the local-rates with those of foreign operators, certain items are relatively cheaper to send locally. So while foreign users of postal services might enjoy discounted bulk rates, the starting point (over-the-counter) rates start at much higher levels.
As regards what Minister Gatt wrote, I have my doubts about how better the service would truly become after full liberalisation. See the rates in Germany and UK. See the present problems in the UK, with strikes looming on the eve of the busiest time of the year.
Furthermore, I don't know why the minister is mixing online services with postal services.though an online transaction might generate a postal item (ike the delivery of a pre-paid vehicle licence) this is in fact only half the transaction - the payment did not go through the post! So in real terms, the postal transactions have been halved.
As regards stuff bought over the internet, there are already many operators (like courier companies) making the deliveries - so yes, the market is liberalised more than we (or Mr Gatt) think.