Worldwide, postal and delivery economics has attracted considerable interest as the delivery sector undergoes rapid change and the debate on liberalization rages. This compendium of original essays has been selected from papers presented at the Rutgers University CRRI 14th Conference on Postal and Delivery Economics, May 31-June 3 2006. It explores the important new trends and issues in this rapidly changing field. The European Union's plan to open postal markets completely in 2009 has raised questions about t he role of regulation, funding for the Universal Service Obligation, the future of national Postal Operators and the principles that should govern the introduction of competition. The contributors - researchers, practitioners, lawyers and senior managers from around the world - address these questions in chapters that cover postal markets, pricing, efficiency and cost analysis, labor relations, and demand drivers. Examples are drawn from around the world.

This timely book will be illuminating to practitioners and managers in the postal, express and delivery industry, as well as economists, regulators, competition lawyers, and marketers.