Whats New with IMB?
Unlike the two-state PostNET code that is currently required for automation-based discounts, or the two-state PLANET code used for Confirm service, the four positions of the IMB allow a 31 digit string of information about the mail piece—far more than the 11 digits of PostNET or 13 digits of PLANET. IMB expands the information in the barcode to include the routing information of PostNET, the processing/delivery tracking information of PLANET, and a version of Address Change Service (ACS). For mailers, the promise of IMB is in the ability to track mail more comprehensively than is currently possible through the USPS Confirm service. Confirm, which originated as a delivery confirmation service, allows tracking of either outgoing or incoming first class, periodical, and standard mail letters and flats. As mail pieces with Confirm barcodes are processed, records are created that identify (among other things) the processing facility, date, and time before the records are forwarded electroni
