Progress in the Competitive Agenda in the Postal and Delivery Sector

Progress in the Competitive Agenda in the Postal and Delivery Sector
Author: Michael A. Crew
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2009-01-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1848447280

Regulation continues to be an important issue in the postal and delivery sector of the global economy. This latest volume in the Advances in Regulatory Economics series reflects the latest research on trends and policies affecting the postal sector and progress made in the industry s competitive agenda. It is global in scope and covers a broad range of legal and economic issues from leading scholars, researchers, and policy makers. Topics covered include: service quality and price caps, the impact of price regulation on service quality, financing the USO, cost analysis and pricing of innovative postal products, postal demand studies, the effects of intermedia competition; mail order demand; Internet advertising, trends in direct mail, legal and regulatory issues related to the postal sector, competitive strategies in the parcel market, and environmental impacts of mail. The book also provides concrete analyses of the driving forces underlying restructuring, transformation and privatization strategies of postal operators. Scholars and practitioners in public sector economics and postal regulation will appreciate this in-depth treatment of their industry.

Heightening Competition in the Postal and Delivery Sector

Heightening Competition in the Postal and Delivery Sector
Author: Michael A. Crew
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 405
Release: 2010-01-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1849803250

This compilation of original essays by an international cast of top scholars addresses some of the major issues now facing postal and delivery services throughout the world. The European Commission and member states wrestle with the problem of how to implement the scheduled liberalization of these sectors and maintain the universal service obligation while the United States Postal Service is coming to terms with the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act. In addition, the book addresses the impact of electronic competition as well as other problems facing the field. The contributors analyze pressing issues such as access to infrastructure and service elements, changes in the national regulations of EU countries, forecasting mail volumes and the evolving market environment, issues surrounding universal service and others. Undergraduate and postgraduate students and researchers in regulation and public sector economics along with industry professionals will find this volume informative and useful.

The Contribution of the Postal and Delivery Sector

The Contribution of the Postal and Delivery Sector
Author: Pier Luigi Parcu
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 322
Release: 2018-03-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3319706721

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 in a state of near crisis and drastic change is needed. 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. Post Offices (POs) have been slow to address the threat of electronic competition. On the other hand, e-commerce presents opportunities for POs to expand their presence in parcel delivery and perhaps help finance or redefine the USO. A major aim of this book is to address strategies POs can use to reinvent themselves for the digital age.This book compiles original essays by prominent researchers in the field, which will be selected and edited from papers presented at the 25th Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics held in Barcelona, Spain, May 24-27, 2017. That conference, and this volume, commemorates the memory of Michael Crew who organized twenty-four prior conferences and co-edited previous conference volumes. This book is a useful tool not only for graduate students and professors, but also for postal administrations, consulting firms, and Federal Government departments.

Reforming the Postal Sector in the Face of Electronic Competition

Reforming the Postal Sector in the Face of Electronic Competition
Author: Anheuser-Busch
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 421
Release: 2013-01-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0857935801

'Professors Crew and Kleindorfer have once again assembled a valuable collection of essays that address timely and important issues in postal sectors throughout the world. The essays employ diverse methodologies to provide useful insights about recent and likely future developments in the postal industry. This book will be a valuable resource for researchers, industry practitioners, and policymakers alike.' – David E.M. Sappington, University of Florida, US In our increasingly technology-focused world, demand for traditional postal services is steadily shrinking. This timely volume examines the many challenges that the worldwide postal sector is facing as a result of growing electronic competition, and offers expert recommendations for reshaping postal structures to strengthen their competitiveness in an electronic age. Drawn from a selection of papers presented at the 20th Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics in Brighton, UK, this book showcases expert contributions on the rapidly changing postal sectors in both the United States and Europe. Topics discussed include the various financial challenges posed by decreasing demand for postal services, recent changes in how postal services are provided, and new structures and modes of operation, such as privatization, that are currently affecting the industry. Contributors offer a thorough breakdown of the issues as well as ideas for keeping the postal sector alive in a world that is growing ever more reliant on purely electronic means of communication. Economists with an interest in regulatory economics, innovation and public sector economics will find this volume useful and informative, as will institutional libraries and industry professionals.

The Changing Postal and Delivery Sector

The Changing Postal and Delivery Sector
Author: Michael Crew
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 345
Release: 2017-01-20
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3319460463

This book addresses some of the major issues facing postal and delivery services throughout the world. Postal operators worldwide 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. Comprised of original essays by prominent researchers in the field, this book addresses the new reality of the postal industry and proposes ways in which postal operators might reinvent themselves. Issues discussed include cross-border parcel delivery, e-commerce, the transformation of postal networks, and the effects of postal liberalization. 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 useful information in this volume.

The Role of the Postal and Delivery Sector in a Digital Age

The Role of the Postal and Delivery Sector in a Digital Age
Author: Michael A Crew
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 355
Release: 2014-01-31
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1782546340

This volume, the result of the 21st Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics (Ireland, 2013), describes the continuing problem of the decline of the postal sector in the face of electronic competition and offers strategies for the survival of mail s

New Business and Regulatory Strategies in the Postal Sector

New Business and Regulatory Strategies in the Postal Sector
Author: Pier Luigi Parcu
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 341
Release: 2019-02-13
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3030029379

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.

Multi-Modal Competition and the Future of Mail

Multi-Modal Competition and the Future of Mail
Author: Michael A. Crew
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2012
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0857935828

This compilation of original papers selected from the 19th Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics and authored by an international cast of economists, lawyers, regulators and industry practitioners addresses perhaps the major problem that has ever faced the postal sector – electronic competition from information and communication technologies (ICT). This has increased significantly over the last few years with a consequent serious drop in mail volume. All postal services have been hard hit by ICT, but probably the hardest hit is the United States Postal Service, which has lost almost a quarter of its mail volume since 2007. The loss of mail volume has a devastating effect on scale economies, which now work against post offices, forcing up their unit costs. Strategies to stem the loss in volume include non-linear pricing or volume discounts, increased efficiency and the development of new products. This loss of mail volume from ICT is one of a number of current problems addressed in this volume. The Universal Service Obligation (USO) continues to be a leading issue and concern that ICT undermines postal services' ability to finance the USO is discussed. The importance of measuring and forecasting demand and costs take on even greater importance as ICT undermines the foundations of the postal business. This thought provoking book brings to bear new analyses of the most serious threat post offices have ever faced and raises fundamental questions as to the future of mail. Multi-Modal Competition and the Future of Mail is an ideal resource for students, researchers in regulation and competition law, postal administrations, policy makers, consulting firms and regulatory bodies.

Reinventing the Postal Sector in an Electronic Age

Reinventing the Postal Sector in an Electronic Age
Author: Michael A. Crew
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 393
Release: 2011-01-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1849805962

This compilation of original essays by an international cast of economists, regulators and industry practitioners analyzes some of the major issues now facing postal and delivery services throughout the world as competition from information and communication technologies (ICT) has increased. Competition has become increasingly important in the postal sector for some time in the form of alternative entrants providing mail delivery. However, the competition from ICT in the form of email and instant messaging, the Internet, Facebook and other forms of social networking and portable wireless devices such as the iPad and Kindle may be even more significant. Mail volumes are falling and the economies of scale that have made possible daily deliveries to every address are being eroded. This book assesses volume these declines resulting from this so-called eSubstituion and looks at the ways the postal sector can adapt to the rapid changes resulting from ICT. The impact of electronic invoicing on transactions mail, and the impact on bulk mail of electronic forms of advertising are examined. Strategies, including pricing and access policies, are discussed in the context of the increasing impact of ICT. A rethinking of the role of mail in an electronic age is taking place and this book provides the cutting-edge of this rethinking and the attempts of POs to reinvent themselves while continuing to meet the public s expectation of continuing ubiquitous daily deliveries of traditional mail products. Undergraduate and postgraduate students and researchers in regulation, competition law, innovation and public sector economics along with institutional libraries and industry professionals will find this volume informative and useful.

Utilities Reform in Twenty-First Century Australia

Utilities Reform in Twenty-First Century Australia
Author: Malcolm Abbott
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2021-07-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0192634259

Utilities Reform in 21st Century Australia: Providing the Essentials traces the development and consequences of the economic reform measures undertaken in the utilities sector in Australia (communications, energy, water/wastewater services, and transport) in the last years of the 20th century, and early decades of the 21st century. In doing so, it looks at the process of reform across industries, and across the state and federal jurisdictions, to identify what motivations the various governments had for pursing reform, how change varied across jurisdictions, and what issues arose in the process. Although by the mid-1990s all states and territories and the Australian Government were committed to reforming utilities as part of the National Competition Policy, not all pursued this reform with the same degree of speed and breadth of action. The broad trends of economic reform in Australia, and abroad, are also touched upon, to provide an outline of the wider context in which the reform of the utilities occurred. This book, therefore, explores the relationship between politics and society on the one hand and economic reform on the other; as well on as the efforts of governments in Australia to promote economic growth and the wealth of Australians in an increasingly complex and challenging global economic climate.