Retail IT News For VARs — January 26, 2015
By Phillip Britt, contributing writer
In the news, the National Retail Federation comments on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision not to review the debit card swipe fee decision. Also, a study predicts the number of merchants that can accept EMV payments will increase by 650 percent by October.
NRF Comments On Supreme Court Decision Not To Review Swipe Fee Ruling
The Supreme Court announced it would not review the appellate court ruling on whether the 2011 cap set on debit card swipe fees is too high. According to the National Retail Federation, swipe fees are too expensive, leaving the merchant and the consumer to pay far more than they should. Additionally, banks that already charge fees for their services will be the ones reaping the benefits of these fees set higher than Congress had asked for the year before the cap was set. Organizations that brought the case are NRF, the National Association of Convenience Stores, the Food Marketing Institute, the National Restaurant Association, NRF member Boscov’s Department Store, and NACS member Miller Oil Co.
EMV Terminals To Increase By 650 Percent
A recent study conducted by the Boston Retail Partners found that the number of retailers who would update their systems to accept EMV payments would increase by 650 percent by October of this year, according to pymnts.com. October 1, 2015, is the date when liability will shift to the merchant for fraudulent credit card transactions if the merchant does not have an EMV-enabled system. EMV technology alone is not enough to stop fraud, but when combined with tokenization and encryption, fraud will be more difficult at the point of sale.
Predictions For 2015 For Wi-Fi, Location-Based Services, Smartphones
RCR Wireless News offers predictions for 2015 for Wi-Fi, indoor location-based services, and smartphones. Faster Wi-Fi connection (802.11ac) will become more mainstream. The hospitality industry is certainly speeding down the path of a faster Wi-Fi speed as the general current one used (802.11n) is no longer meeting the demands of users wanting to connect with their phones. Location-based services, driven by in-store beacons and mobile purchasing, will increase shopper-marketing initiatives. Smartphones will earn their prefix of “smart,” learning to tailor an experience to its users’ preferences.
Retail IT Talking Points
According to 9to5mac, about 1.1 million payment cards have been activated with Apple Pay. Apple Pay debuted on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3 back in October. Since then, numbers are increasing — in part with the help of grocery stores accepting Apple Pay payments. One grocery store chain is the Save Mart Supermarkets in Northern California and Nevada, which includes Lucky, Save Mart and FoodMaxx stores. iPhone 5, 5s and 5c users will be able to use Apple Pay once the Apple Watch rolls out in March.
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