Comments on: Royal Mail shut down useful community websites

By: Philip Hands

Philip Hands — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:41:31 +0000

There's no need to rely on people who are happy to violate copyright to get hold of PostCodes gratis -- there are free sources, such as Free The Postcode The only minor problem is that the database is not yet complete (and never will be absolutely complete, since it is chasing a moving target). Of course, in the case of the web sites you mention, it's mostly a case of people putting their own post code in in order to find local information, and they know where they live already. That being the case, the site could respond to gaps in the data by saying "we're not quite sure where that is -- please point to your home using this (liberal copyright) map, and we'll add you're postcode to our map, and tell you what you need to be upset about in your area". Pretty soon you'll have all the postcodes where people have Internet. Cheers, Phil.

By: Royal Mail Rub Our Noses in it | Software Cooperative News

Royal Mail Rub Our Noses in it | Software Cooperative News — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:24:48 +0000

[...] after Royal Mail shut down useful community websites causing MP comments on the idiocy of Royal Mail, I was rather surprised to get this little thing in [...]

By: David

David — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 09:36:12 +0000

I’m with Dan, ‘the straight choice’ just smears the Liberal Democrats. It is to the Green Party, what the Taxpayers Alliance is to the Tories. The Byelection site is a great site for election leaflets, where you can make your own mind up.

By: Postcode campaign gears up to save popular web services | Mark Pack

Postcode campaign gears up to save popular web services | Mark Pack — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:20:23 +0000

[...] Alex blogged previously: With postcodes so increasingly important to national life, it’s ridiculous that they are not [...]

By: Dave Page

Dave Page — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 20:50:52 +0000

Surely this is useful community websites make use of dodgy postcode data from license-violating company which gets told to stop it by the copyright holder? The headline is misleading and sensationalist. If websites like The Straight Choice had used a freely-available source of postcode data such as New Public Edition Maps, they wouldn't have been shut down when Ernest Marples got caught red-handed violating the Royal Mail's license. Even if you agree, as I do, that the RM data should be free, that doesn't mean that RM don't have the right to enforce their copyright.

By: Andrew Turvey

Andrew Turvey — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 22:56:44 +0000

You can sign a petition on this subject at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/nfppostcodes

By: Frank H Little

Frank H Little — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:58:26 +0000

With postcodes so increasingly important to national life, it’s ridiculous that they are not public data
Two thoughts: the commercial use of postcodes is a nice earner for Royal Mail, which, in a mixed economy, we surely would not want to stop? (I also take on board ‘s point about having to pay for the work to maintain the system.)

Secondly, any legislation would have to be carefully framed. If we simply eradicated the Mail’s copyright on postcodes, the corporation would no doubt feel compelled to switch to another system which it had control over, e.g. Walksort.

By: Hywel

Hywel — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:17:18 +0000

Quite Dan. I won’t upload anything I write up there

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:52:56 +0000

Good riddance to ‘the straight choice’ which deliberately smears the Liberal Democrats (and its predeccessors), by repeating the urban myth that Simon Hughes ran this as his slogan in the Bermondsey by-election. He didn’t and a site purporting to be of record should at least have a name which is neutral.

Anyway there’s a much better site for election literature at http://www.by-elections.co.uk/. Maybe they can be pursuaded to do a local leaflet section.

By: Peter1919

Peter1919 — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:30:02 +0000

I have no problem with the royal mail (which we all own through the government don’t forget) making money out of post code services to commercial compnies but I do think not for profit sites and certainly charities might be allowed free use of the service.

By: Richard

Richard — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:47:04 +0000

Isn’t the obvious campaign a boycott of using postcodes?

If postcodes are private information then they are also a monopoly.

For a start monopolies are bad in principle and geocoding of information is so important in so many areas that this should be public info made freely available to all.

By: Andy

Andy — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 08:23:27 +0000

It may be ridiculous that they aren’t public info, but they’re not. Having spent a while doing contract work at the Royal Mail, and meeting the very small number of very dedicated people who work in that department maintaining the accuracy of the postcode database, I have zero sympathy for anyone who builds a business based on the re-use of what is, in effect, stolen property.

By: Will

Will — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 03:34:29 +0000

well said! I had no idea postcodes were not public info. I’ll see you at the barricades!

By: Joe Taylor Condliffe

Joe Taylor Condliffe — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:20:14 +0000

Bloody hell. Let us know what we can do, OK?

A Free The Postcodes campaign, perhaps?