NEWSThe Prepaid International Forum Chairman and cofounder Christopher Reddish died on June 17, 2011, while competing in the Morgan Cup yacht race across the English Channel. The 46-year-old Reddish, a crew member on one of the 72 yachts that participated in the race, fell overboard and drowned approximately 17 miles southeast of the Isle of Wight. The Prepaid International Forum, a U.K.-based international trade association for the prepaid card industry, lamented the loss of Reddish, an industry pioneer who combined strong leadership skills with industry knowledge and a personable manner.
A superior court judge in Fresno, Calif., threw out a $75 million breach of contract lawsuit filed against the Kardashian sisters for pulling their support from the infamous prepaid Kardashian Kard. Superior Court Judge Jeff Hamilton said attorneys for Revenue Resource Group LLC failed to prove they could win their case against the reality TV celebrities.
The MasterCard Worldwide-branded loyalty card was launched Nov. 9, 2010, and terminated less than a month later when Dash Dolls LLC, the company run by Kim, Khloe and Kourtney Kardashian, backed out of the endorsement deal it inked with RRG following public criticism of the fees charged on the Kardashian Kard.
Research conducted at the 2011 Isle of Wight Festival held June 10 to June 12 concluded that MasterCard prepaid contactless wristbands were popular with festival goers. Survey respondents overwhelmingly agreed the wristbands, rendered contactless by MasterCard's near field communication scheme called PayPass, were quicker and easier to use for concessions purchases than credit or debit cards.
Ninety-six percent of respondents said the wristbands allowed them to make payments quicker than with traditional bankcards; and 98 percent agreed the wristbands were easier to use than plastic. Additionally, 100 percent of survey respondents indicated they wanted to use the wristbands for future entertainment events.
ANNOUNCEMENTSSafeway Inc. subsidiary Blackhawk Network added home improvement chain store Lowe's Companies Inc. to the gift card mall purveyor's gift card lineup. The Lowe's gift card will be available through gift card malls located in 1,750 stores across the United States.
Popular Mexican singer-songwriter Paty Cantu became a spokeswoman for the Univision MasterCard Prepaid Card. The advertising campaign highlights how Cantu uses the card to pay for everyday purchases.
Online game publisher KingsIsle Entertainment Inc. reported its Mega Bundle prepaid game card is now available at GameStop stores in the United States. The Incomm-distributed card is already available at over 45,000 stores in the United States, Australia and New Zealand, the game publisher said.
PrepaYd Inc., which had been outsourcing customer support, opened an in-house Level 1 Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard compliant call center. Bruce Berman, Chief Executive Officer of PrepaYd, expects to use the call center as a new avenue to upsell PrepaYd card products.
The Western Union Co. launched its international business payments service in Peru. The Western Union Business Solutions provides cross-border business payments and foreign exchange solutions to small and medium-sized businesses.
PARTNERSHIPSContinental Prison Systems Inc., doing business as EZ Card and Kiosk, expanded its partnership with commissary services provider Canteen Services Inc., allowing EZ Card and Kiosk to deploy its prepaid card solutions in county jail facilities throughout Michigan.
Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) inked a deal to manage the new Travel Money Card Plus program for the U.K. Post Office. The card will be available at over 3,000 postal branches across the United Kingdom, as well as online.
Additionally, FIS contracted with the Tyburn Group Inc. to process the program manager's TrustCard payments on behalf of U.S. military personnel and signed a multi-year agreement to provide prepaid card transaction processing, risk management and call center services for Hong Kong-based Transact24 Ltd.
Phone card provider SelectCore Ltd. renewed its contract with Hudson's Bay Co. to continue to provide POS activation and processing services for HBC's prepaid gift cards for another three years.
ACQUISITIONSZPrepay Inc. completed the acquisition of Precommunications Inc. to expand its customer base for prepaid products, including bill payments and phone cards.
APPOINTMENTSNetSpend Holdings Inc. named Steven Coleman as its Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. Coleman previously served as Chief Legal Officer and Secretary of business-to-business payment provider Syncada LLC.
As part of MoneyGram International's opening of its first office in Manila, Philippines, the money transfer specialist hired Alex Chan Lim to manage the operation and grow MoneyGram's network in the Asian country.
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