WASHINGTON (February 6, 2013) – The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) applauded the United States Postal Service’s (USPS) announcement that it would be ending Saturday mail delivery. But ITIF argues more comprehensive reforms are required to address budget shortfalls and better align the agency with the needs of the Information Age.

“This decision is a step in the right direction but it will not solve the problem,” says Robert Atkinson, President of ITIF. “We need a fundamentally new postal model where USPS concentrates on its true competitive advantage — last mile mail delivery — and opens up all other parts of the system to true and fair competition.”

As email and other digital mail services have gained in popularity over the last two decades, the Post Office has seen revenues decline to the point where it lost $5.1 billion in 2011 and is expected to have performed even worse in 2012, according to the Government Accountability Office. This is not simply due to slow economic growth. And it is not sustainable.

“Mail delivery is still a necessity, and should be overseen by the government to make sure all American have access to it,” Atkinson adds. “But the Postal Service is currently supporting and paying for a large, outdated system of post offices and sorting facilities that do not match demand. By concentrating on what it does best, delivering mail to tens of millions of American households, and opening up the rest to private sector competition USPS can better meet its central goal, delivering the mail at reasonable prices to Americans without losing money.”

To learn more about ITIF’s recommendations for postal reform visit: http://www.innovationfiles.org/stick-to-the-mail-postal-reform-means-rad...