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Amazon parts with Bill Me Later
n Dec. 30, 2008, Amazon.com informed its customers it was cutting off Bill Me Later as a payment option as of Dec. 31. The move was a result of eBay Inc.'s purchase of BML in October for $945 million.
Amazon's statement offered no explanations; it simply said, "Bill Me Later will no longer be accepted as a payment method on Amazon. However, all sales and orders processed with Bill Me Later prior to the sunset date will continue to be processed." More than 1,000 online stores, catalogs and travel sites currently offer BML as a payment method.
GS 08:12:02 – Lead Story
Chess is a game of strategy and patience. The payments industry is also a game of strategy and patience, except it is played in the marketplace instead of on a board. And the stakes are high; livelihoods are in the balance. This year-in-review article traces how 2008 played out and gives a glimpse of what the payments game may entail in 2009.
GS 08:12:02 – News
Mega-mergers' impact on payments
According to a report by Mercator Advisory Group, several large commercial banks in the United States are involved in mergers that stand to significantly impact the payments industry. Mercator Senior Analyst David Fish said that in order to maintain market dominance, consolidation was inevitable in the top-tier financial institutions.
GS 08:12:02 – News
E-commerce fraud hits $4 billion
A study of e-commerce fraud by CyberSource Corp. indicates merchants expect to lose a record $4 billion to online criminals in 2008. In the past three years, loss rates have hovered around 1.4 percent of merchant revenue, but continued growth in e-commerce sales means dollar losses to fraud are growing.
GS 08:12:02 – Features
The prepaid, m-payments intersection
Many believe the future of the payments industry resides in that little gadget we can't seem to live without – the mobile phone. If that future arrives, the prepaid industry will likely become an even bigger player in the next wave of payments. So says Lee Britton, Chief Executive Officer at London-based Altair Financial Services International PLC.
GS 08:12:02 – Views
What history teaches about change
With some of the nation's largest banks circling the drain – and others already out of business – might the nation's leaders be having second thoughts about the walls that have separated banks from other businesses for years? No one can say for sure. But these are unusual times, and stranger things have happened.
GS 08:12:02 – Views
Pass-through pricing is ever more prevalent; once reserved for only the largest accounts, it is now being used regardless of merchant size. Also, interchange is growing more complex. And the major card brands are increasing their network access fees while introducing new acquirer fees. Is it time to pass along these fees to merchants, per our processing agreements?
GS 08:12:02 – Street Smarts
Dreams fulfilled: Six easy steps
Salespeople who don't write down their goals each day tend to be distracted by every interruption and never seem to get the things done that they set out to do in the morning. Successful sales reps always have a written plan that includes specific goals. This article presents six easy steps you can take to master the goal-setting process.
GS 08:12:02 – Education
Today, a marketing program is not fully developed if it does not incorporate vertical market opportunities. And in the payments industry, focusing on specific verticals can deliver significant marketing bang for the buck. It can also help establish brand awareness as quickly and surely as virtually any other approach.
GS 08:12:02 – Education
The ascent of Internet technology has led to an array of thin client solutions in payment processing. These Web-based tools offer flexible, cost-effective ways for ISOs and processors to manage large populations of devices. This article provides a look at how some thin client solutions are helping to streamline efficiencies and expedite our sales-to-activation process.
GS 08:12:02 – Inspiration
Negativity is a hallmark of the major media, which often feed on the world's turmoil and broadcast it directly into our brains. If we dwell on this, we may become paralyzed with fear. Sure, money's tight right now. But the antidote to negativity is decisive, positive action. This article suggests several things you can do right now to ensure you continue to thrive.