Wednesday, December 21, 2011
In a letter delivered this week, Stanford University Professor Barbara van Schewick asked the Federal Communications Commission to investigate Verizon Wireless's decision to block Google Wallet on its new smart phone.
Van Schewick believes Verizon's decision to block the Google Inc. app violates FCC rules forbidding the blocking of applications or devices. The law and electrical engineering scholar said Verizon's action hurts consumers, competition and innovation. She additionally noted Verizon's alliance with other mobile carriers in the ISIS mobile wallet effort have provided the mobile carrier with an incentive to ban Google Wallet. Free Press, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., also recently registered its objections with the FCC to the Verizon ban of Google Wallet.
ISO North American Bancard said it is releasing a software development kit (SDK) for the Apple iOS platform to use with NAB's Pay Anywhere app and credit card reader. The free Pay Anywhere payment device allows users to take credit card payments on Apple or Android devices.
The new SDK enables mobile payment application developers to use the Pay Anywhere mobile payment platform in their applications. The SDK is free and open to third-party developers in both a basic and advanced version. Though the SDK release is only for Apple iOS, the company said it will have an Android SDK soon. For more information, email tmcweeney@payanywhere.com .
A number of media reports noted a rising number of federal class action lawsuits filed against ATM operators whose machines do not have surcharge notices posted on them. The Detroit Free Press wrote in April 2011 about a retired couple traveling around Michigan, searching for unlabeled ATMs and, upon discovering an unlabeled ATM, filing suit in Michigan federal courts alleging violations of the 1978 Electronic Fund Transfer Act.
The paper reported that the couple had thus far filed suit against 36 banks and that Independent Bank of Ionia, Mich., had settled a lawsuit for $350,000 covering 40 of its ATMs.
Clusters of similar suits have been filed in California, Texas, Illinois and Massachusetts. One media outlet reported these suits have been trending since 2009 and that some people may be removing stickers from machines so they can file suit. 
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