Eighty Percent of Consumers Want Payment Alternatives

Michael Garrity — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Online and mobile credit card payments just can’t seem to shake the stigma of being somewhat risky propositions. No matter how many security advancements are developed, many consumers still can’t fully get on board with the idea.

Javelin Strategy and Research recently conducted a consumer survey that highlights these still-prevalent fears. In fact, 80 percent of consumers said they “would spend more money online if they considered credit cards safer and had payment alternatives.” As a result, Javelin estimates that customers would spend as much as $109.8 billion more than they currently do online if there were a “no credit card required” method of payment.

The survey, commissioned by PaymentOne, was conducted in fall 2011 and polled over 2,000 U.S. adults. Most of the concerns they expressed about credit card usage were related to privacy, such as their personal data being acquired by advertisers, marketers or hackers.

Some other notable findings in the survey include:

-    95 percent of the respondents owned mobile phones, but just 36 percent had ever used the devices to purchase something -- including apps, games, music and media streaming.
-    55 percent of consumers fear merchants or websites will send them junk mail.
-    54 percent fear their information is being sold to other merchants.
-    51 percent worry that their credit card information will be intercepted online.
-    41 percent fear that merchants will misuse their credit card information.

Visa, MasterCard Change Policies; Amex Balks

Linc Wonham — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 02:30:00 GMT

The two largest credit card companies in the world almost immediately settled a dispute filed in federal court Tuesday by agreeing to allow retailers to offer discounts to shoppers using less expensive payment methods – debit cards or credit cards without rewards, for instance, as opposed to more costly (for merchants) credit cards that do offer rewards.

Visa and MasterCard were two of three defendants named in the lawsuit, and the third company – American Express – has refused to settle and will contest the suit.

Regardless of AmEx’s decision, the settlement will almost certainly have a significant positive impact on e-commerce retailers, and it will expedite even more change in the already chaotic payments field. With the emergence of mobile commerce, the credit card companies, major financial institutions and dozens of startup companies are racing to provide merchants (and consumers) with the most advantageous payments solutions, and Tuesday’s decision provides retailers with more options and greater leverage.

It is more costly for e-commerce merchants to accept payments from cards that offer substantial rewards, such as Visa’s Signature Preferred card, than it is to accept debit cards and no-reward credit cards. By having the ability to offer rebates to consumers using the lower-cost cards, retailers can incentivize the online payment process for the first time.

Tuesday’s settlement came about from a law that was signed over the summer allowing retailers to offer rebates for cash, checks and debit cards, but the distinction between rewards and non-rewards credit cards was not addressed at that time.

'Net Features : credit cards

Eighty Percent of Consumers Want Payment Alternatives

Visa, MasterCard Change Policies; Amex Balks