Mailing/Fulfillment - Postal Trends

BALTIMORE—August 6, 2007—Vertis Communications introduced today Vertis MailTrailTM, an advanced mail tracking and reporting system powered in cooperation with GrayHair Software. Driven by the United States Postal Service’s next-generation Intelligent Mail Barcode technology, Vertis MailTrail provides marketers the ability to trace a direct mail campaign’s journey through the mail stream, from a package’s initial entry to its projected in-home delivery date. “Over the past few years, we’ve seen a strong need for offering our clients a powerful and intelligent mail tracking solution to provide a more complete picture of campaign and customer data,” said Dave Colatriano, senior vice president and general manager of

CAMBRIDGE, MA—If you will be attending Graph Expo ’07, visit Window Book at Booth #2297 where they will be showcasing its new mailing product, Postage Statement Form Filler (PSFF). PSFF is an easy and cost-effective solution for quickly producing printed USPS Postage Statements replacing hand-written mailing statements. Postage Statement Form Filler allows users to easily create computer generated Postage Statements, when submitting them handwritten is the only other option. The new Postage Statement Form Filler will generate the following statements and forms for processing your mailings: 3541, 3600-R, 3602-R, 3602-N, 3605-R, 3606, 3700, and 8125s. Fill out your statements faster and more accurately. In addition, PSFF

MENOMONEE FALLS, WI—July 24—Arandell Corp., one of North America’s top catalog printers, recently announced the purchase of additional co-mail equipment. The addition increases our expansive co-mailing capacities by 100 percent and gives clients an alternative way to manage their postal rate increases. “Our goal is to aid clients in combating an unprecedented postal rate increase,” said James R. Giencke, Arandell president and chief operating officer. Mr. Giencke also serves on the board for the Association for Postal Commerce (PostCom). “The additional capacity will help us acquire new business and provide a greater opportunity for clients to join Arandell’s co-mail program.”

There’s no escaping the fact that direct mail just doesn’t work with a bad address. The most compelling creative printed on the finest brochure is useless if it doesn’t get to the intended recipient. Why should that matter to you? The ultimate responsibility lies with your customer and their mailing list, after all. If they give you a bad address and you print and mail it correctly, it isn’t your fault if it doesn’t get delivered. That reaction will probably hold up in court but, in business, you need to do better. The more you work with your customers’ data, the more they will

AT FIRST DATA, there is no question the future of customer messaging is viable and vibrant. The giant firm ($6.5 billion in sales in 2005) recently completed the spin-off of its profitable, but non-core, money transfer unit, which is enabling the Omaha-based company to focus more attention and resources on its fundamental credit card processing and customer messaging capabilities. Those activities are substantial. The firm sits atop the pinnacle of the steadily growing credit card processing world, handling the transactions of more than 415 million card accounts on behalf of 1,500 institutions and retailers. Its presence in the customer messaging industry is equally impressive.

New Postal Rates Announced, but it’s not Over Yet! March 20, 2007—As everyone with an interest in distributing print by mail knows by now, new increased postal rates will take effect on May 14th, except for periodicals (i.e., magazines, newspapers and some newsletters) which have been delayed until July 15th. The impact of the increased postal costs is likely to result in a decline in print volume—how big a decline will vary by mail category or class and the mailer’s ability to achieve the maximum postal discounts available under revised work-sharing rules. Magazine Increase Delayed, but Not Forgotten The USPS Board of Governors delayed instituting

Request Reconsideration for Some Mail Classes; Approve Shape-Based Pricing Board of Governors Set May 14 for New Prices WASHINGTON, DC—03/19/07—The Governors of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) today approved an increase in the price of a First-Class stamp to 41 cents, authorized the issuance of the Forever Stamp, approved shape-based pricing, and set May 14 as the date for implementation of these changes. (See chart below.) However, they delayed implementation of new prices for periodicals and requested reconsideration for some mail classes. USPS proposed new rates on May 3, 2006, and the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) issued its recommendation on Feb. 26, 2007. The Governors spent considerable

Murray D. Martin Appointed President and Chief Executive Officer; Michael J. Critelli Named Executive Chairman STAMFORD, CT—03/19/07—Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE: PBI) today announced a new executive leadership structure to position the company for continued growth in a changing environment. Effective May 14th, Murray D. Martin, the company’s President and Chief Operating Officer, will become President and Chief Executive Officer. Michael J. Critelli, the company’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, will assume the newly created position of Executive Chairman. Effective immediately, Mr. Martin also is appointed to the company’s Board of Directors. As CEO, Martin will assume full strategic and operational responsibility for the company,

RESTON, VA—Visitors to GRAPH EXPO will see more machinery, more top brand manufacturers and more innovative processes than at any other industry exhibition and conference in the Americas this year. Held in the mammoth McCormick Place South, September 9-12, 2007, in Chicago, IL, GRAPH EXPO’s dedicated Mailing & Fulfillment Center will be more comprehensive than last year, with the largest showcase of mail processing, sorting, stamping, weighing, addressing and preparation equipment in one place. Space sales in the Center at the same time in 2006 totaled over 25,000 square feet with 42 exhibitors, and it has already grown by nearly 10%, with well over

Collaboration Will Help to Identify Emerging Postal Issues and Facilitate Education PHILADELPHIA—March 2, 2007—Printing Impressions, the most influential journal for printing and graphic arts worldwide, today announced a partnership to sponsor mailing education programs developed by The Bennett Group, Inc of Rochester, NY Mark Michelson, Editor-in-Chief of Printing Impressions states, “Our goal has always been to keep printers informed, inspired and enlightened and the upcoming USPS postage rate increase is the most crucial concern facing our industry today. By affiliating ourselves with the mailing training products, programs and services of The Bennett Group, we continue our commitment to lead the way in addressing