Tuesday, August 10, 1999
No lines, no licking
Postal Service approves online postage
BY JANELLE CARTER
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Now it's postage over the Internet. The Postal Service Monday launched PC Postage, a stamp that can be printed through personal computers.
Whether it's used by the average consumer mailing holiday cards or wedding invitations or a business sending correspondence, the system eventually could change the way many people put postage on their envelopes.
Consumers would go online to one of the companies offering PC Postage. With an ordinary laser or inkjet printer, a bar code would be printed on each envelope to indicate mail processing information and postage payment. For packages, consumers would enter the weight, buy the appropriate amount of postage and print it on labels to be put on the packages.
“With PC Postage you can purchase and print postage 24 hours a day, seven days a week from the convenience of your home or office,” said Pam Gibert, Postal Service vice president of retail.
Wellington Wilson, a San Francisco businessman whose Wellington E-Group is creating an online shopping mall, provided his own testimonial. “This operation is so slick, so simple, so easy,” said Mr. Wilson, who has been using the Stamps.com product as part of a pilot program since January.
Stamps.com of Santa Monica, Calif., and E-Stamp Corp. of San Mateo, Calif., began offering the computerized postage Monday. Two other companies — Neopost Inc. of Hayward, Calif., and Pitney Bowes of Stamford, Conn. — are to begin offering the products in coming months.
Consumers can use those companies' Web sites to purchase and print postage for domestic first-class, Priority and Express Mail and for parcel post envelopes and packages.
With each company, the consumer goes to the company's Web site to register and download any required software. Some companies offer the software free while others require a fee.
Consumers also will pay handling fees to the companies — they will range from $1.99 to $19.99 a month depending on usage rates, according to companies' plans — along with payment for the postage. Purchases can be made either by debit or credit card.
Spill chokes off Ohio River traffic
Skating craze spawns demand for new parks
No lines, no licking
Pleasant Ridge man held in death of library volunteer
ATP not all tennis; some parties do happen
Case for at-large judges pushed
Changing area codes a nuisance
Developer sues Mason planners
It erred, but bank wants its money
Judge orders hacker to make 'token' restitution to victims
Kentucky nuclear workers to get help
Lottery players yawned at Red Ball
Murder charge upgraded in Warren County killing
Paper terrorism alleged at trial
Physicist UC vice president
Plea out for blood donors
School crisis training is open
Send us your ideas on tax surplus
An electronic remedy for carsickness?
Memories fill books
Monroe's Doty says council days over
New equal-opportunity chief for city
OSHA to investigate death in grain silo accident
Scaring up success
Social need answered at Talbert
State schools chief seeks better ties with districts
Technician discovers child porn
GET TO IT
TRISTATE DIGEST
