Printed matter is a term, mostly used by mailing systems, normally used to describe mechanically printed materials for which reduced fees are paid which are lower than first-class mail. Each

postal administration This is a list of postal entities by country. It includes: *The governmental authority responsible for postal matters. *The regulatory authority for the postal sector. Postal regulation may include the establishment of postal policies, postal rat ...

has it own rules for what may be posted as printed matter. In the

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

a special "Book Post" was introduced in 1848 that by 1852 had been extended to the wider range of material.

Conception

Printed matter was produced by printers or publishers, such as

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical ...

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

s, booklets, brochures and other publicity materials and in some cases,

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, spor ...

s. Because much of this material is mailed, it is also a category of

mail The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sys ...

, accepted for delivery by a

, that is not considered to be first-class mail and therefore qualifies for a special reduced printed matter postal rate. Depending on the specific postal regulations of the country, it is usually non-personal correspondence and printed in multiple quantities. Most postal authorities do not permit additional services, like

registration Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), th ...

express Express or EXPRESS may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * '' Express: Aisle to Glory'', a 1998 comedy short film featuring Kal Penn * '' The Express: The Ernie Davis Story'', a 2008 film starring Dennis Quaid Music * ''Express'' ...

services, to be added to items mailed as printed matter. In the Postal Convention between the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

and the

Republic of Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

, proclaimed on June 20, 1862, terms were specified relating to the rates for printed matter between the two countries. The rate was one cent for every ounce or fraction of an ounce.

By country

China

Printed matter was called as ''Chūbǎn-wù'' () or ''Yìnshuā-pǐn'' (印刷品) what had the thousand-years history.

United States

As of June 2007, the

USPS The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...

has a printed matter classification known as "Bound Printed Matter", BPM, defined as, advertising, promotional, directory, or editorial material that is securely bound and at least 90% is imprinted by a process other than handwriting or typewriting and is only available for user with an imprint permit. For international shipment of printed matter, the USPS provides a discount M-bag service;Postal Explorer > IMM Issue 37 - International Mail Manual > 2 Conditions for Mailing
260 Direct Sacks of Printed Matter to One Addressee (M–bags)
/ref> following the 2007 elimination of surface mail, only

airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be t ...

M-bag remains.

United Kingdom

The term is Printed Papers as used by the Royal Mail.http://www.royalmail.com/sites/default/files/RM_International_Stamps_Franking_Wallchart_Mar2014b.pdf

References