Is that a glimmer of light?

Mastheadonline has done a great service by getting on the blower and asking for answers from Canada Post concerning its recently announced publishing deal with Rogers Publishing.

Many in the industry were steamed a) that the post office was competing with its own customers, b) that Rogers, which had led the charge against postal rates, had negotiated such a deal, c) about whether movers had given consent and d) that the valuable list created was being monopolized by the Rogers book. Not all those concerns have been answered, but a Canada Post spokesman did address some of them. Here's the relevant section from the Mastheadonline item:

Spokesman John Caines said that, as of April 1, Canada Post will start to “obtain consent for sending relevant offers and promotional products, such as magazines, as part of the change-of-address service.” And, most interestingly, Canada Post “will provide [an] opportunity for businesses to communicate with this consumer segment via the Mover’s Kit mailed to our customers and during select follow-up mailings during the period following their move.”

It sounds a little like they are offering some sort of co-op mailing for subscription efforts as a sop to the aggrieved competitors. But how this deals with the competition for the valuable shelter advertising dollars is not at all clear. As Masthead says, stay tuned.