With the holiday season right around the corner, United Parcel Service launched a new iPhone shipping application that lets consumers track and ship packages and find UPS retail stores.

The iPhone application lets consumers with a My UPS account create shipping labels that can be emailed in PDF format for printing. Consumers can also track their history of shipments.

?The launch of the UPS Mobile app for iPhone is part of our overall mobile strategy to use the latest technology to make our customers' lives easier,? said Donna Longino, a spokeswoman at UPS, Atlanta. ?Mobile makes UPS services easily available to small business owners and other on-the-go professionals.?

UPS is a worldwide package delivery company. The company serves more than 200 countries and territories worldwide.

After consumers make shipping labels on their iPhone or iPod touch, the can use the application's find locations feature, to locate a UPS store. The application uses the iPhone?s GPS capabilities for this function.

The new iPhone applications does not require log-in for package tracking, but when logged in, the application shows a history of tracked shipments. It automatically refreshes when the application is opened.

Consumers can also nickname UPS tracking numbers for quicker reference.

Ms. Longino said that the UPS iPhone application is targeted to iPhone users who are shipping decision makers, specifically small business owners, mobile professionals such as sales people and repair workers.

The application is also targeted to consignees who benefit from the ability to quickly track shipments.

?The timing of this release right at the holiday season will also help the average consumer keep track of the packages they're shipping to friends and family everywhere,? Ms. Longino said.

UPS also launched an application for Apple computer users with NRG Software LLC.

NRGship Mac organizes all the details of the consumer?s shipments in one place. It has been designed for the needs of small Mac-based businesses that ship 5-to-10 packages per day.

With the application, Mac businesses can use UPS online services such as tracking, rates and service selection and address validation.

The most wonderful time of the year
Last year UPS updated its mobile site as the holiday rush began.

To obtain shipping information while on the go, UPS upgraded UPS Mobile, its suite of mobile shipping applications that is compatible with most mobile platforms, online browsers and devices, including the Apple iPhone (see story).

Ms. Longino said that mobile is a great way to extend UPS? brand.

?Like the UPS brand, mobile technology is all about access and convenience,? Ms. Longino said. ?We have greater access than anyone in our industry and mobile simply extends that accessibility.

?The free UPS Mobile app for iPhone provides our customers with convenient tracking, shipping and finding UPS locations,? she said. ?With mobile access, UPS is available anytime, anywhere.?