August 28, 2007
Credit Cards Now Officially Accepted Everywhere
In some recent commercials for Visa credit cards, consumers are seen approaching cashiers at fast food restaurants, quickly swiping their credit cards and moving on. But when one consumer pulls out cash, the music abruptly stops and the swift purchasing momentum is broken. The message is obvious -- credit cards are fast replacing cash as the means for transactions both big and small. And nowhere is that more the case than in Silver Spring.
Via blogger dl004d we find that Post newspaper boxes at the Silver Spring Metro now accept credit cards. No longer will commuters have to fumble around for 35 cents, much less remember to take six quarters with them if they want to buy a Sunday issue.
All told, it's a creative last breath for an industry that is constantly losing readers. But with the ample supply of free dailies and weeklies out there, we're not sure how much the convenience of a credit card will make people want to buy the Post. We're still impressed though.
Picture courtesy of dl004d
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holy crap i think this is a fabulous idea
hooray! not only is our national currency backed up my public "confidence" and "trust" (no longer gold) the next logical step would be to just make the whole currency system based in the digital world and in theory! go USA!
now, lets get the metro buses on plan!
I can say the single biggest reason I NEVER buy a paper from the machines is because I don't carry change and try to avoid cash whenever possible. This is a very good idea.
Nothing says America like paying 14% APR on a 35 cent purchase
Yeah right, this is a perfect area for credit card number skimming. The mafia and local gangs salute this idea.
It probably wouldn't be too tough to use one of these (or set up a dummy one) to steal credit card numbers.
Getting credit card readers on the Metrobus would be a tough project. The bus doesn't need to access the network when it reads your metrocard because your balance is contained on the card itself.
But what I want to know is why I can't swipe my metro card twice for an additional passenger.
Buying with a CC is great until you're the victim of fraud or have a dispute. I'm still trying to settle a fraud issue that occured last November. When it's all settled, I'll have a $1k credit, but to avoid complications I have not used that card at all since the complaint was registered. It's a low-rate credit union card that I would have liked to use for some travel this summer, but I used another card instead.
Do you really think the free dailies and weeklies is an alternative to the Post?
So lemme get something straight. I pick up a copy of the City Paper and get all the information I need so I don't buy a Post. Or the Express. Do you really think the Post would release a free daily that hurt their Post readership numbers?
Think a bit longer before you write the first cool thought that pops into your head.
I am so setting up a fake newspaper machine to steal credit card numbers. Much more cost effective than my Monkeyrotica Bank ATM machine grift. Anything to keep from going back to splitting twenties and mattress tag traffiking.
Do you really think the free dailies and weeklies is an alternative to the Post?
I dunno, I think you could do pretty well drawing information from the following list, without having to read the print version of the Post. I live in Takoma Park, so I'm including some of the Montgomery County publications, but I know that there are equivalents in Northern VA.
Weekly -
The City Paper
The Onion
On Tap
The Northwest/Georgetown/Dupont/Foggy Bottom Current
The Montgomery Gazette
Takoma Voice (monthly)
Daily -
Express
The Washington Examiner
Also, given the fact that all WaPo content is available on line, including the comics, the question still stands ... why should I need to buy a paper copy of the Post, no matter how convenient they make the purchase?
What next? Pay toilets that accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover? Swipe it then wipe it!
So these machines are hooked to phone lines and power? Geez they should just hook up a printing press to the back and call it a day.
The next innovation will be the ability to swipe your credit card to 'vote' for President... which ever candidate ends up with the most 'votes' (money) wins!
Wait, that's kinda what we do now...
I'd trust these to securely transfer my credit card info as much as I'd trust an infant to hold onto my card physically on the sidewalk in Farragut Square in the middle of rush hour.
This may seem really convenient, but this is a nightmare waiting -- just waiting ...
And then it'll happen.
Back to the Future 2. We are getting close. I want my freaking hoverboard!
-Sean
So these machines are hooked to phone lines and power?
I'm guessing that they run on battery or solar power, and that the transactions are small enough that they "trust" you have the room under your credit limit and send off the card info in batches, either via wireless transmitter or regular visits by someone who downloads the data. It wouldn't be practical or cost-effective to have these things connected to electricity or "land" phone lines.
looks like the several positions of the key, including "scan" visible on the larger version of the photo indicate the person filling it the next morning will scan the data the following day.
I don't get it. Don't credit card companies charge the POS merchant more than the cost of the paper for processing the transaction? How does this help The Post, besides potentially marginally increasing their print circulation numbers? I'm missing the motive...
Nate -
Point well made. 15 weekly/daily does in fact replace 1 Washington Post.
They probably bundle the charges and submit thousands at once the way Apple does with 99-cent iTune purchases.
Reid: I was able to pay for both my bus fare and my wife's with my SmarTrip card the last time I took the 5A home from Dulles.
I find that I read stories in the hard copy version that I would never read in the online version. In fact, I'll read the entire hard copy version, front to back. Better edumacation.
Downtown Rez - Great point. the interchange fee will take a huge chunk out of the 35 cents. Will this give reason to raise the price of the print edition? I wouldn't be surprised.
CC's are convenient but they can be costly for both consumers and merchants. Have a look at UnfairCreditCardFees.com