The Prepaid Press - December 15, 2007 - (Page 22)

PAYMENTS December 15 · 2007 - 22 Transcard Selected for Discover Payroll Cards Choice Hotels To Pay Employees Electronically CHATTANOOGA, TN (November 19, 2007) Transcard will provide Discover Network branded prepaid stored-value card solutions to Choice Hotels franchisees, enabling them to pay their employees electronically. Transcard, a provider of turn-key prepaid debit, and Discover Network-branded prepaid card solutions, formed a Qualiﬁed Vendor relationship with Choice Hotels International, Inc., a worldwide lodging franchisor with ten hotel brands. Craig Fuller, CEO of Transcard, said, “The Transcard payroll platform has the potential to allow signiﬁcant gains in employee retention and satisfaction for employers because their employees will be paid on-time.” As one of the fastest growing payroll trends, payroll cards offer employees that may not have traditional banking relationships, a safe and convenient way to manage their pay income. Employers also are realizing payroll cards are a cost-effective way for both employers and employees to reduce the costs associated with the payroll process, according to Transcard. According to the American Payroll Association, it costs between $1 and $2 to process, print and deliver a single paycheck and $9 to replace a lost or stolen paycheck. Additional expenses often include postage or courier fees to distribute paychecks, as well as the cost of tracking and accounting for paychecks once they’re issued. The Discover Network payroll card program automatically loads funds onto cards issued to each employee, which can then be used anywhere Discover Network cards are accepted. Transcard said that eliminating paper checks minimizes employers’ exposure to check fraud and removes bank-processing fees for stop payments on lost or stolen checks. “Administering payroll can be a time-consuming and costly process for many companies,” said Tom Crowder general manager, Discover Network prepaid programs for Discover Financial Services. “We were pleased that we could help connect Transcard and Choice Hotels to provide a payroll card solution that helps the company’s franchisees streamline their payroll process, while building employee retention.” Transcard will manage the Discover Network payroll card program, providing Choice Hotels franchisees with 24/7/365 customer service support, online maintenance of account balances and transactions, and an array of reports. “We feel that the electronic payroll solution offered by Transcard will give franchisees’ employees at their hotels a convenient and secure method to receive their paycheck, particularly if they do not have a bank account to store their earnings,” said David Goldberg, senior vice president, brand solutions, Choice Hotels. Source: Transcard (www.transcard.com) Choice Hotels International (www.choicehotels.com) Discover Financial Services (www.discoverﬁnancial.com) MasterCard Launches Prepaid Travel Card Enhanced with Contactless Payment Technology PURCHASE, NY (December 3, 2007) MasterCard Worldwide has introduced a prepaid reloadable travel card, which will include PayPass contactless funct i ona l i t y. T h e card is produced in conjunction with Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), a travel industry data and ﬁnancial solution provider. The MasterCard Travel Card will be available through ARC’s network, which has more than 20,000 U.S. travel agent locations. MasterCard said it is the ﬁrst prepaid travel card offering in the U.S. to be equipped with contactless technology. “The new MasterCard Travel Card offers the utmost convenience to travelers with a sleek, secure and widely accepted payment card that can be used at more than 25 million locations in more than 210 countries,” said Bill Mathis, Executive Vice President, Relationship Management, MasterCard Worldwide. “Travelers no longer need to fumble through foreign currency or carry bulky travelers cheques. Instead, they can simply swipe or Tap & Go and be on their way.” The MasterCard Travel Card is designed for both domestic and global travelers with travel related benefits, such as emergency traveler assistance, lost luggage insurance, purchase assurance and zero liability protection for unauthorized transactions in the event the card is lost or stolen. Cardholders can obtain local currency at any of the more than 1 million ATMs in the MasterCard ATM Network. “The combination of MasterCard’s unsurpassed global network and ARC’s team of afﬁliated travel agents and global base of airlines and railways makes this offering a terriﬁc solution for travelers looking for a convenient and cost-effective way to pay anywhere in the world,” said Chuck Fischer, Director, Business Development & Payment Systems Solutions, Industry Products & Services, ARC. “There is an obvious synergy between MasterCard Worldwide and ARC – a global leader in travel industry settlement – that will enable us to deliver to consumers a more efﬁcient travel experience that beneﬁts all parties involved.” SSB Payment Systems also contributed to the card. MasterCard said the new card is a move to meet the growing demand for prepaid travel cards. The travel card market in North America is estimated to grow to nearly $9 billion in gross dollar volume by 2010, according to Independent Research commissioned by MasterCard Worldwide, April 2007. Source: MasterCard PayPass (www.mastercardworldwide.com) ARC (www.arccorp.com) SSB Payment Systems (www.ssbpayments.com) Vesdia and MXT Card Services Form Alliance To Offer Cardholders Unique Rewards ATLANTA, GA and WILMINGTON, DE (November 28, 2007) Vesdia Corporation, a provider of loyalty marketing services, and MXT Card Services LLC have signed a multiyear agreement to enhance Vesdia’s branded programs with affinity-based reward credit cards. “We are proud to be associated with the company known for its innovation, value, and results in the loyalty and rewards industry,” said Greg Rigg, CEO and President, MXT Card Services. “We look forward to providing Vesdia’s BabyMint, Stockback, NestEggz, and FundraiserRewards customers with the high quality service experience that they have come to expect from these leading-edge programs.” Vesdia’s loyalty platform enables cardholders to receive merchant-funded rewards of up to 30% on everyday purchases made through the company’s network of thousands of national and local brick-and-mortar stores and online retailers including 1-800-FLOWERS. COM, Gap.com, Illuminations, Lumber Liquidators, and Overstock.com among others. Vesdia said the addition of MXT’s afﬁnity credit card products will enable consumers to earn additional rewards on all purchases, both in and out of network, and accelerate their ability to earn rewards faster. Vesdia’s loyalty platform also provides cardholders with the added beneﬁt of automatically converting rewards into deposits into college savings, retirement savings, investment, and other banking accounts, as well as donations to charitable organizations, according to the company. “MXT’s alliance with Vesdia demonstrates their continued commitment to offering organizations and cardholders leading afﬁnity card reward solutions based on best practices,” said Peter Davis, CEO and President, Vesdia Corporation. “By tightly integrating with our merchant-funded rewards network and meaningful redemption options, both companies are able to build deeper relationships with cardholders, as well as increase cardholder activation and usage.” Source: MXT Card Services, LLC (www.mxtcs.com) Vesdia Corporation (www.vesdia.com) The Giving Tree Card Gives Back GiveCard Offers Holiday Bonus Alternative NASHVILLE, TN (November 13, 2007) Giving Tree has launched The Giving Tree GiveCard - “the gift card that gives back”. Givecard is a prepaid MasterCard gift card that allows the recipient to donate 10% of the value of the card to charity and the remainder used like cash anywhere MasterCard debit cards are accepted. “We think the GiveCard is a great employee reward for companies that want to enhance or build philanthropic giving as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives,” said Jeff Jacobs, co-founder and EVP of Giving Tree Giving Tree said the new card offers the following features: • All donations are tax-deductible by the employer • Support a corporate foundation, or employees choose donation recipient • Choice of card values from $25 to $500 • Personalized or Nonpersonalized options available • Bulk activation or individual employee activation Source: Giving Tree (www.givingtreelife.com) http://www.transcard.com http://www.choicehotels.com http://www.discoverfinancial.com http://www.mastercardworldwide.com http://www.arccorp.com http://www.ssbpayments.com http://Telrite.com http://1-800-FLOWERS.COM http://1-800-FLOWERS.COM http://Gap.com http://www.mxtcs.com http://Overstock.com http://www.vesdia.com http://Telrite.com http://TelriteWireless.com http://Telrite.com http://www.givingtreelife.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Prepaid Press - December 15, 2007

The Prepaid Press - December 15, 2007 GENERAL PREPAID 2007: Prepaid in Review New Prepaid Association? Contents A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum Regulatory Rundown: FCC Enforcement, SEC Cracks Down, VoIP Hacking, & Wireless Regulation The Legal Line WIRELESS Prepaid Wireless Roundup kajeet to Offer Horoscopes, Jokes and Trivia Redknee Extends Converged Billing Solution AT&T GoPhone Offers Roaming Option in Mexico Total Call Mobile Introduces Holiday Bonus Wireless in Brief INTERNATIONAL Spot Rates Keycorp to Distribute Hypercom in Canada International in Brief Mobile Communications in Latin America Gets a Leg Up TELECOM & TECHNOLOGY T&T in Brief Phone House Launches New Card Facebook Goes Mobile CVT and Total Call Settle IDT Lawsuit Wireline Capex Grows 7% in Third Quarter PAYMENTS Transcard Selected for Discover Payroll Cards Vesdia and MXT Card Services Form Alliance The Giving Tree Card Gives Back MasterCard Launches Prepaid Travel Card Payments in Brief 7-Eleven Pushes Video Games Capital One and NetSpend Merger Off i2c Launches New Release of Campaign Manager Prepaid Card Dispensing from ATMs Credit Card Design Competition Begins NRF Says Gift Cards Gaining Popularity EXTRAS Classifieds Contact Us Our Advertisers

The Prepaid Press - December 15, 2007

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