An online post office is a

commercial mail receiving agency In the United States, a commercial mail receiving agency (CMRA) is a private business that accepts mail from the Postal Service on behalf of third parties. A CMRA may also be colloquially known as a mail drop. A mailbox at a CMRA is called a pri ...

that implements the concept of

hybrid mail Hybrid mail is mail that is delivered using a combination of electronic and physical delivery. Usually, it involves digital data being transformed into physical letter items at distributed print centres located as close as possible to the final deli ...

, enabling conventional

mail The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letter (message), letters, and parcel (package), parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid ...

to become electronic, or electronic correspondence to be printed and mailed at a remote location. As paper correspondence becomes inconvenient for businesses that are evolving to maintain a

paperless office A paperless office (or paper-free office) is a Workplace, work environment in which the use of paper is eliminated or greatly reduced. This is done by converting documents and other papers into digital form, a process known as digitization. Propone ...

, services have emerged to outsource the task of scanning

snail mail The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sy ...

as it arrives. Some online post offices will scan envelopes for subscribing customers, and offer handling options (E.g. whether to scan the contents, store, or shred them). Some providers will systematically scan and make the contents immediately available. In contrast,

L-Mail Hybrid mail is mail that is delivered using a combination of electronic and physical delivery. Usually, it involves digital data being transformed into physical letter items at distributed print centres located as close as possible to the final deli ...

is designed for senders, enabling mail to go from an electronic form to conventional mail. Some online post offices will offer a send feature as a companion service. Sending mail electronically and having it printed close to the delivery point shortens the time it takes the correspondence to reach the recipient.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Online Post Office Postal systems Postal services

See also

References