Finland to do away with regular snail mail; replaces postal service with scanned email copies

In a move to reduce CO2 emissions and number of postmen required, Finland is about to do away with regular mail -- instead, mail will be opened, scanned and delivered digitally to its recipient.

It could only happen in one of the most cold and sparse nations in the world -- Finland has a population of just 5 million, and only Iceland has a more-northerly capital than Helsinki -- but if it takes off, who knows where this could lead? You can't fault the logic of the idea, that's for sure. Year-round daily delivery of mail to unpopulated areas, over fjord, snow, and mountain can't be easy, efficient or safe. Digital delivery almost sounds... sensible.

This is just a trial, though, for 126 households and 20 businesses. There are obviously security concerns -- the service is 'highly automated', but there are still humans involved in the opening and scanning of mail -- but anyone that claims it's less secure than normal mail is crazy. If anything, security would be improved by a reduction in points of failure: less employees! No curious postman handling your letters during the delivery!

"This is totally different from email. It is comparable to web banking," said Tommi Tikka, a director at Itella, the state-owned company which runs postal service. And you know what... I believe him! This is a great idea! And for those of you that still write love letters by hand (seriously, Flash animations are so much more romantic), get this: the original mail is still delivered, but just twice a week instead of daily!

Faster, convenient, safer and better for the environment. What're we waiting for?!

Tags: delivery, digital, email, finland, post, postal service, PostalService, snail mail, SnailMail