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Come 1 April 2007, Singapore's postal sector
will be fully liberalised. |
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The Government has decided to open the Basic
Mail Services market, which includes the collection and delivery of
letters and postcards, within, into and out of Singapore, after a
15-year monopoly by Singapore Post Ltd (SingPost)1. |
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With this, new players will be allowed in
both domestic and international mail services. This adds greater
competition to Singapore's postal sector, which has seen the
liberalisation of other segments such as Express Letter Services as
early as 19952. |
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The decision will further the Government's
commitment towards building an open economy and strengthening
Singapore's position as a regional business hub. |
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Liberalisation is expected to generate cost
savings of S$8 million to S$25 million per year over the next two to
three years, to largely benefit businesses. Today, businesses account
for almost 95 per cent of Singapore's total domestic mail. |
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In 2004, Singapore's postal services sector
generated an annual revenue of more than S$1 billion3. |
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Total mail volume4 has also been growing
since the 1990s, and most recently, at about two per cent per year. |
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Liberalisation of the Basic Mail Services market
will be the catalyst for greater sector growth. The newly liberalised segment
presents a plethora of fresh business possibilities, including value-added
services and tailored postal solutions such as letter mail tracking and
staggered delivery of letters. |
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The Government's decision to open the Basic
Mail Services market follows a public consultation in August 2006 by the
Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA). |
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Agreeing that liberalisation will be a catalyst for
the postal sector's growth, the industry had expressed their support and
provided inputs on the proposed liberalisation framework. |
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Taking into account the feedback, IDA
will effect key changes to promote competition, while ensuring
continued provision of Basic Mail Services, public confidence in
Singapore's postal system, and the protection of consumers'
interests: |
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Key Changes to the Basic Mail
Services Regime |
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The key changes to the Basic Mail
Services regime are given below: |
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a) SingPost's 15-year monopoly licence
will end. Thereafter, two types of licences will be available: |
i. Postal
Services Operators (PSOs) designated as Public Postal
Licensees (PPLs), with universal service obligations such
as providing island-wide letter collection and delivery
services, maintaining a minimum number of post boxes and
post offices for consumers' easy access, and offering
service quality according to standards set by IDA.
ii. All other
PSOs regardless of their service scope
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b) IDA will continue to designate
SingPost as the PPL. To protect consumers' interests and taking
into account feasibility and security constraints, IDA will also
grant SingPost the following: |
i. Letterbox
masterdoor keys
To ensure that our security concerns of mail integrity and
accountability are met, SingPost will continue to hold the
full set of letterbox masterdoor keys. IDA will facilitate
other PSOs to access SingPost's delivery network at
regulated prices, terms and conditions. The PSOs may also
deliver mail directly to letterboxes with no locked
apertures. Going forward, if there are PPLs who would like
to have direct access to letterboxes, and can propose
arrangements that address the security concerns cited, IDA
will be open to consider granting such PPLs with letterbox
access.
ii. Right to
issue national stamps
As national stamps carry the country's name and to prevent
consumer confusion over which PPL the national stamp
belongs to, SingPost will continue to be the only one to
issue these stamps.
iii. Right to
maintain Singapore's postal code system
For greater operational efficiency, Singapore will keep a
centralised postal code management system. SingPost will
continue to manage this centralised system, while
providing access to the postal codes database to all
interested PSOs.
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c) The Basic Mail Services market will
be opened to competition, including inbound and outbound
international mail. |
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IDA will continue to maintain a robust
competition framework to protect consumers' interests, and ensure
fair play and certainty for all in the business. |
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Following today's decision, public
consultations will be conducted within the first quarter of 2007
by the Government to solicit more feedback on details of the
regulatory, licensing, and competition frameworks and code. |
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More details on IDA's decision on the
liberalisation of the Basic Mail Services market can be found at
www.ida.gov.sg, under the sections "Policies & Regulations",
"Consultation Papers & Decisions". |
ISSUED BY CORPORATE & MARKETING
COMMUNICATION DIVISION
INFOCOMM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF SINGAPORE |
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1
In April 1992, Singapore Post Ltd (SingPost) was granted an
exclusive right to provide Basic Mail Services for 15 years until
31 March 2007. The monopoly licence was granted in recognition of
its investments in the nation's postal infrastructure.
2 The market for Express Letter
Services was liberalised in April 1995. Printed paper (such as
magazines and advertising brochures) and parcel delivery services
do not require licences and have been operating in an open market
since the 1970s.
3 Source: The Singapore Department of
Statistics on "post and courier activities￣ for 2004
4 Total mail volume includes ordinary
letters, postcards and printed papers, but excludes express
letters and parcels. |
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About Infocomm Development
Authority of Singapore |
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The Infocomm Development Authority of
Singapore (IDA) develops, promotes and regulates
info-communications in Singapore, with the aim of establishing
Singapore as one of the world's premier infocomm capitals. |
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To nurture an internationally
competitive infocomm industry, IDA offers a comprehensive range of
programmes and schemes for both local and international companies.
For more information, visit
www.ida.gov.sg. |
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Source:
www.ida.gov.sg Media Release 5
Feb 2007 |
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Related Article: |
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Public consultation on draft Postal Services (Amendment) Bill |
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FrontPage Edition: Mon 5 February 2007
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