Telstra details network agreement with Australia Post

Telstra signed a deal with Australia Post to provide an assortment of telecom and cloud technologies for the mail deliverer’s upcoming Digital MailBox service.

Under the agreement, Telstra will provide Australia Post with a managed IP network, mobile services including smartphones and tablets, unified communications services and local, secure cloud services, Telstra said. The company did not disclose terms of the agreement.

Telstra will help the post office move its product-based infrastructure to a managed service network allowing Australia Post to provide new products and services over its retail and distribution network. Telstra also will assist Australia Post in other IT projects, it said.

Telstra said it would integrate Digital MailBox into its own services. “Australia Post has selected our cloud to host their Digital MailBox service and Telstra will also use the Digital MailBox to complement our existing digital options such as our website and mobile applications,” Telstra Enterprise & Government group managing director, Paul Geason, said in a statement.

The arrangement will “make it even easier for customers to access our services all across the country,” said Australia Post general manager post digital, Catriona Larritt.

Australia Post previously announced that it would use Telstra’s Australian-based cloud to help deliver the Digital MailBox, which is due to launch later this year. The Digital MailBox lets users access bills and account statements and make payments. Customers can also use the MailBox as a “digital vault” to upload documents from any Internet device.

The news comes amid a series of Telstra announcements related to the cloud, including alliances with IPscape and SAP. Telstra has said it will invest $800 million over the next five years in cloud infrastructure.