BERLIN (Reuters) - German logistics company Deutsche Post DHL (DE:DPWGn) announced plans on Tuesday to expand live tracking of parcels and letters, extend its network of lockers and make it easier to pay for postage without having to stand in line at a post office.
Deutsche Post said all franked letters would get a matrix code in future to allow their progress to be tracked through sorting centres, a move that should help the company investigate lost items and fight fraudulent reuse of stamps.
It will also allow customers to pay by app to frank letters, issuing a multi-digit code that they can write on their post without the need to print anything.
DHL will launch live tracking of parcels this year, allowing recipients to see when they will be delivered via an app, which will show on a map where the delivery van is and allow them to say where they want a parcel left if they are not at home.
The moves come as Deutsche Post DHL faces increasing competition, including from Amazon (O:AMZN), which is building up its own logistics service in Germany, already offering customers the ability to track parcels.
DHL will also make it easier for customers to frank return parcels, including at the company's 24,000 post offices, 4,500 locker stations or with a postal worker at their front door.
The company plans to increase the number of locker stations to 7,000 by 2021 and has developed a new kind of machine where customers can send letters and parcels and buy stamps, with a video chat function also being piloted.
The company is cooperating with two companies - GMX and WEB.DE - to allow customers to get advance notice of letters, with the envelopes being photographed in sorting centres and emailed to the recipients.