RM:closing job search over data dispute & sacking workers

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Royal Mail: closing job search over data dispute while sacking workers

http://www.openrightsgroup.org/press/pr ... job-search" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Royal Mail: sacking workers and closing down service helping them find new jobs over IP dispute

A number of non-profit online services face closure today, after Royal Mail sent a cease and desist letter to free post code campaigners.

The services affected include Job Centre Pro Plus, which allows you to find jobs near you. Royal Mail is currently looking to slim its workforce of 121,000 postal workers.

Royal Mail today sent a ‘cease and desist’ letter to Ernest Marples Ltd, the organisation providing a post code API allowing social projects to use post code searches.

Jim Killock, Executive Director of the Open Rights Group said:

“It’s outrageous that Royal Mail should be sacking workers and at the same time trying to close a service that might help them find work.

“Post codes were created with public money, so they need to be used for the widest public benefit. Ernest Marples have been showing how this can be done. Their ideas need to be legalised for non-profit use, not shut down.

“Intellectual Property rules need to work for society, and not the other way round.

“An amicable solution to allow non-commercial use of post code data would be easy to create, even ignoring the wider innovation benefits of making the data free to use. Clearly, something that allows greater use of post codes is needed right now.

“Better access to information means more social and democratic benefits.

“Services have to pay around £4000 a year to use post code data legally; which raises Royal Mail around £1.3m a year. It is easy to see that large numbers of small business ideas and not for profit services are being blocked by these license fees – it is in effect a tax on innovation.”

Other services facing closure include Planning Alerts, which finds planning applications near your post code, and The Straight Choice, detailing election leaflets and their claims by post code.

The campaigners behind Ernest Marples are programmers Richard Pope and Harry Metcalfe. Harry is also a member of ORG’s board. Harry is taking no part in ORG’s campaigning on this issue.

================================================================================================================

http://www.openrightsgroup.org/blog/200 ... ng-workers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Jim Killock, 05 October 2009

Sometimes the reasons why we need more open data regimes slap you in the face. This is one of those occassions, as the Royal Mail, who are looking to slim down their workforce of 121,000 postal workers, sent a ‘cease and desist’ letter to Ernest Marples, the campaign providing post code data to new online services

One of the services that has closed is Job Centre Pro Plus, which allowed users to find jobs near them through a post code search. It is particularly galling that Royal Mail are simultaneously trying to make people redundant, and closing a service which could help their ex-workers get a new job.

Other services provided made planning applications near you easier to find, and identified political leaflets sent near you. All were developed in the knowledge that they could be closed, but had proved very useful even in the few months they were running. Planning Alerts had gained 6,000 users.

These services would have to pay around £4000 a year to use post code data legally; which raises Royal Mail around £1.3m a year. It is easy to see that large numbers of small business ideas and not for profit services are being blocked by these license fees – it is in effect a tax on innovation.