The Universal Postal Union (UPU) and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers(ICANN) today signed a contract granting the UPU managing authority over the top-level domain name,
.post (dot.post). The new domain is expected to go live in mid-2010.The UPU is the first United Nations agency to obtain a piece of real-estate space on theInternet for the global industry it represents. ICANN President Rod Beckstrom and UPU DirectorGeneral Edouard Dayan signed the contract at the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland. The.post domain name is expected to be operational by mid-2010.
Dayan said the .post project is an important initiative for developing and providing secureand trusted postal services over the Internet. “Postal services will explore new frontiers andbasically go where no postal services have gone before,” he declared.
“Many Posts already successfully offer a range of electronic products and services that meetcustomers’ new communication needs. Dot.post will enable the UPU to reach the full potential of itsoriginal mission, to build a worldwide space without borders where personal and businesscommunication is facilitated in a secure environment. Postal services have facilitated the exchangeof information for centuries; they were at the forefront of globalisation and today continue toextend their reach across physical and digital boundaries,” Dayan pointed out.
“We are extremely pleased by this agreement because it marks an historic first,” said RodBeckstrom, president and chief executive officer of ICANN. “This contract with the UPU is the firstagreement that ICANN has signed with a specialised agency of the United Nations and anintergovernmental institution. It is an important contribution to the internet, and will help usexpand ICANN’s multi-stakeholder model to include as many global voices as possible.”
As a platform for extended postal services, .post will have many possible applications thatexpand the postal brand and business to the internet, ensuring that mail received with the .postextension comes from a recognised postal-service provider, the UPU said.
The .post domain will be used for developing e-commerce and facilitating international trade,enabling small entrepreneurs to offer their services more easily. It will also facilitatee-identification, linking electronic addresses to physical postal ones to serve as legal proof of aperson’s identity. Furthermore, the domain name could eventually act as a bridge between nationalgovernments for the transmission and recognition of official documents.
“With .post, we will be able to extend the universal postal service and make the Post amulti-channel service provider, enabling us to reach customers at any time and anywhere they are,”said Faouzi Belhassen, a director at the Tunisian Post. Tunisia chairs the UPU’s e-Services Group.
As its guardian, the UPU will develop, implement and monitor governance rules for .post andmanage the attribution of domain names. These will be available to postal sector stakeholders whomeet strict eligibility criteria. The UPU will identify an operator to set up the .post registry,as well as a number of ICANN-accredited registrars to sell the .post domains.
In Geneva, the Italian postal operator, Poste Italiane, also agreed to work closely with theUPU on securing electronic postal services, including the .post project. Poste Italiane hasdeveloped a vast technology-enabled integrated service platform and a unique capability inprotecting its own data, services and infrastructure from digital threats and cybercrime. At theUPU, Italy currently chairs the Telematics Cooperative and the Standards and Technology Committee.
Massimo Sarmi, CEO of Poste Italiane, joined the UPU’s Edouard Dayan in Geneva to sign amemorandum of understanding supported by the UPU’s Postal Operations Council and Council ofAdministration.
Promoting electronic postal services is part of the UPU’s world postal strategy for2009-2012, adopted at its last Congress in Geneva in 2008. Many Posts have been offering a varietyof electronic postal services for more than 10 years, from online post offices and electroniccertification postal marks to e-registered mail, hybrid mail, e-shopping platforms and e-governmentservices, all electronic equivalents of a number of existing physical services.
