ETD: 784 Need a new payment method; Single-Use Credit Cards
Battle Rapid Rise in Identity Theft; April Retail Same-Store Sales
E-Tailer's Digest
etd_post at gapent.com
Tue May 11 10:47:47 GMT 2004
E-Tailer's Digest --- Everything for the Retailer
Issue #0784 May 11, 2004
George Matyjewicz, Moderator mailto:georgem at gapent.com
Published by: GAP Enterprises, Ltd. http://www.etailersdigest.com
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CONTENTS
[1] Greetings
[2] Need a new payment method
[3] Single-Use Credit Cards Battle Rapid Rise in Identity Theft
[4] April Retail Same-Store Sales
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[1] Greetings.
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Hi All:
I trust everybody in the U.S. had a nice Mother's Day, both personally and
from a business point of view.
There is a big interest in a payment process that is secure and allows for
online sales. Many large banks have a stop gap alternative - single-use
credit cards. However, we need a more permanent and secure method. If you
had all the money you needed, and all the brains necessary, what would you
do to create a new payment system?
Read about this single-use credit card. Some folks love it. At least it
protects the banks.
April same-store sales are up here in the U.S. and in the U.K. That's
always nice to hear. How did you do?
Tell us about your business which will remain for posterity at
our "Members: Who Are You?" site. We just updated all those postings that
we were delinquent with the
updates. http://etailersdigest.com/resources/members/index.htm And we have
a form there for you to tell us about you. As I said when I first proposed
this idea, we have "known" each other for a long time, yet we often don't
know anything about each other. So, tell us who you are and what you do.
Now, let's get to everything for the retailer.
Sincerely
George Matyjewicz, PhD
Chief Global Strategist, GAP Enterprises, Ltd.
mailto:georgem at gapent.com
http://www.etailersdigest.com
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[2] Need a new payment method
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Identity theft is a hot topic today. While the Internet has a lot to do
with the rise in theft, it is not something new. Decades ago in NYC
waiters were paid for duplicate credit card slips. The logic a lot of
people use is what's the big deal, the bank makes good for it. Yeah,
right. Guess to whom the bank passes on those costs?
Online, payment for goods is a major issue online. Our digital currency is
a way to pay for goods online, but not without issues. For example, if I
send money to you when I meant to send it to somebody else, I am out of
luck, unless you are kind enough to return it to me. And, if your pin
number gets out, your account is cleaned out, and there is nothing any
digital currency company can do about it.
It seems to me that we need a new and foolproof way to pay for
goods. Credit cards have outlived their life online. Debit cards are
dangerous. So how do we pay for goods where all parties are satisfied?
My doctoral dissertation was on a just-in-time payment system for the
retail supply chain. The process will work, if technology catches up to us.
What do you think? Let's do a brainstorming session, and think out of the
box. What do we need to pay for goods safely?
George
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[3] Single-Use Credit Cards Battle Rapid Rise in Identity Theft
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In recent years, credit-card issuers have been brandishing virtual account
numbers as weapons in the battle against identity theft, hoping to ease Web
shoppers' fears about fraud. MBNA Corp. has offered this substitute card
number -- which typically has the same number of digits as a regular
credit-card number -- free to its customers for a couple of years. And both
Citigroup and Morgan Stanley's Discover Financial Services division are
planning to enhance features on similar products later this year.
In 2003, more than 214.9 million cases of identity theft, online as well as
offline, were reported to the Federal Trade Commission, a rise of about
150% from just two years ago.
At the same time, a greater amount of money is being spent online each
year, increasing the potential for fraud. By 2007, about $104.5 billion --
representing more than 5% of total U.S. retail sales -- will be spent
online on items such as clothes and electronics, according to
JupiterResearch, a division of Jupitermedia Corp. in Darien, Conn.
By offering virtual account numbers, financial services companies are
looking out for their bottom line. They're hoping these tools will give
more consumers the confidence to shop on the Web, potentially increasing
credit-card revenue. Also, card issuers are betting that less online fraud
means less money coming out of their own pockets to pay for unauthorized
purchases. (Cardholders are typically not responsible for fraud-related
transactions.)
These products are easy enough to use. If your credit-card company offers
this free tool, you probably need to sign up and register your card at the
company's Web site. You may have to download software to your computer, or,
just come back to the site to get a new disposable account number before
each purchase. In general, the number can only be used at one merchant,
whether for a single purchase or for a service with a recurring monthly charge.
Details at...
http://online.wsj.com/search#SB108378221931502858
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[4] April Retail Same-Store Sales
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In the U.S. retail sales climbed higher in April, as hot fashions continued
to sell at full price, though gains fell below expectations for retailers
catering to low-income shoppers.
Sales at stores open at least a year, or same-store sales, rose 4.4%,
according to an index of 72 major chains compiled by the International
Council of Shopping Centers, a New York trade group. The results were
solid, especially since April faced a relatively difficult comparison with
year-ago results, and as retailers lost some sales to March because of an
earlier Easter this year.
However, weaker results at discount retailers could indicate that
less-affluent shoppers are feeling the pinch of higher prices on gasoline
and food as well as a still-subdued job market. "The lower end really
hasn't seen a pickup in employment, so we may see this unevenness
continuing for a while," Mr. Niemira said.
Details at:
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB108384270803003870,00.html
In the UK Same-Store Sales were +1.9% On Year; Total +4.9%
According to figures published by the British Retail Consortium Monday,
same-store sales in April were up 1.9% from the same month in 2003, while
sales in all stores were up 4.9%.
The rate of growth was faster than the 1.3% recorded in March, despite the
wet weather that depressed sales of garden equipment and clothing.
However, the three-month trend rate of growth fell to 1.7% from 2.2% in
March, indicating consumers have begun to think twice about spending
following hikes in interest rates in November and February.
Details at...
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,BT_CO_20040510_005407,00.html
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