Credit Card Fair Free Act Spurs Stakeholders to Understand Subject Matter
Congressional Interest in Merchant Credit Card Fees Drives Book Sales
TheMerchantsGuide.com noted today that congressional interest in regulating the fees credit card associations like Visa® and MasterCard® charge merchants has significantly increased the number of publications it is selling.
The proposed antitrust law, now known as H.R. 5546 or “The Credit Card Fair Fee Act” would virtually strip the Associations of their ability to mandate merchant Interchange rates. Interchange rates generally represent the lion’s share of the fees merchants pay when consumers use credit and debit cards to buy products. The proposed law would require the Associations to negotiate with merchants, potentially under court supervision.
According to Michael E. Shatz, publisher of Understanding Credit Card Interchange Fees in Card-Not-Present Environments, “The stakes are high, and supporters and opponents alike want to be sure that they understand the constructs and financial mathematics behind the ubiquitous Interchange rates.
In Shatz’s opinion, “Many pundits say that this bill is dead-on-arrival. Every once and a while, though, Congress serves up a surprise. What’s more, I suspect that Congress is not necessarily happy with the banking industry these days. Between card-issuer fee policies and the mortgage crisis, Congress might just act with a certain amount of prejudice. This bill has made it out of House Committee. There, the pundits were wrong.”
A credit card industry veteran, Shatz doesn’t necessarily agree with the provisions of the legislation. He is agreeable, however, with its effects on book sales. Says Shatz, “We are a boutique publisher, so we are pleased with the noteworthy up-tick in sales this bill has provided. The breadth of our readership is also increasing. The book, primarily sold to merchants, has started to become popular with payment processors, lawyers and even lobbyists.” Focusing on Card-Not-Present transactions, Understanding Interchange develops a foundation for understanding all interchange rates
The Merchant’s Guide provides Direct Marketers and Web merchants accepting electronic payments with methods to lower fees and improve revenues by publishing the informative training guide: Understanding Merchant Account Fees. Focusing on the topics of merchant accounts, payment processing fees and credit card interchange, Understanding Merchant Account Fees is ideal for merchants who process payments using Card-Not-Present models including electronic commerce, mail order, telephone order, catalogs, continuity programs and direct response media.
