Snail-mail traffic down even during holidays

For millions around the world, the act of sealing a love letter or Christmas card and mailing it for hand delivery to a loved one is history. Instead of bringing Christmas cheer to postal service providers, the holiday season is reminding the snail-mail industry that it is now playing second fiddle to the Internet. Philippine Postal Corporation (PhilPost) Assistant Postmaster General for Marketing Luis Carlos said that technology, especially the Internet, has "drastically" reduced the demand for postal service in the last eight to 10 years. "We used to receive volumes of love letters (and) greeting cards. We still (get) about one million pieces of mail daily (but) technology has really overtaken the post," Carlos told GMANews.TV in a phone interview on Thursday. Carlos said the demand for snail mail service began its decline in the 2000 when mobile phones and now broadband became the rage, encouraging consumers to send their greetings through text, e-mail, or online social networking sites. He admitted that the PhilPost was never really able to adapt to these technological changes through the years, but noted that this was not because it simply allowed this to happen but because it did not have the resources needed to cope with the changes. Based on Philpost's annual report, a 4 percent decrease in mail volume was reported last year compared to 2008 because of rapid development in communications technology. Losing money Carlos said that PhilPost used to earn P3.9 billion yearly. Since 2005, however, the state firm's annual gross has been at more or less P3.2 billion. He said PhilPost also owes around P1.5 billion to some banks and suppliers. "Kailangan lumangoy, kung hindi you'll drown (We really need to swim, otherwise we'll drown)," he said. He explained that because PhilPost is under a "universal service obligation" to deliver mail in the cheapest and easiest way, it is often forced to deliver a piece of mail for a fee that is less than what was spent to deliver it. In addition, because the PhilPost is a government-owned and controlled corporation (GOCC), it is not supported by the national government. Created by the Postal Service Act in 1992, it funds itself mainly from its own revenues, grants, and the proceeds of the sale of its assets. According to Carlos, PhilPost was initially allocated around P4.5 billion when it was established but that only P3.3 billion had been released to it by the national treasury. "Maybe the Palace can take a look at us. Hopefully with this (new) administration, the equity pay can be given. Kung magluluto ka, dapat may ingredients (If you're going to cook, you have to have ingredients)," he said. Carlos said PhilPost can use additional funding to venture into ecommerce and improve the "interconnectivity" of the more than 2,000 post offices nationwide. He said this move will improve the tracking of mail and shorten delivery time. "I still believe that what technology has taken away, technology will give back to us," he said. He also said he was still "optimistic" about the situation because technology cannot deliver the packages being sent home by Filipinos abroad. PhilPost still has an edge over 214 private couriers found nationwide because these firms only operate only in major cities, he said. On its own, the company is looking to conducting more joint ventures with private companies to boost revenue and in turn services. "Money begets money," he said. - DM/KBK/RSJ/HS, GMANews.TV