Shanghai municipal authorities yesterday ordered the local affiliate of Nevada-headquartered PostNet to remove the 140 rental post-office boxes from its "pilot center" and turn them over to the Shanghai Postal Bureau within seven days.
The edict was issued after a surprise inspection by the Postal Bureau and the Shanghai Administration of Industry and Commerce.
"We confiscated the advertisements about PostNet's post-office box rentals that we found in the center," said Shi Huitian of the bureau's trade administration office.
Jimmy Xie, general manager of the Shanghai Baoyi Science & Technology Co., the Shanghai franchise-holder, opened a PostNet office on Urumqi Road. Xie said the firm would comply with the order and would cooperate with the authorities.
PostNet had never been, as some had claimed, a foreign post office, Xie said.
As of late last night, PostNet's Website was still advertising its mailbox services.
The crackdown on the firm's mailbox service came one day after a second franchise PostNet office opened on Pudong Avenue in the Lujiazui financial area.
Shi said, "We won't allow the pilot center to use the trademark 'PostNet' because it is a foreign trademark that is not registered in China. Moreover, it confuses people. They may connect PostNet's business service with the postal service."
In China, all mail-related services are the domain of governmental postal bureaus.
While PostNet's pilot center cannot provide any postal services, it was permitted to remain open to offer business services, such as photocopying, faxing, the Internet and the sale of office supplies and Christmas cards.
(eastday.com 12/21/2000)
