NACS said the ad (click on the image below to view the full-page ad) is apparently in response to its efforts to bring transparency and competition to interchange "swipe fees." The ad leads [image-nocss] with, "The only thing 'convenient' about convenience stores...they'll lighten your wallet for you." It goes on to say, "It's not enough that convenience stores overcharge for WHAT you buy. Now, they want to overcharge you for HOW you pay."
"What other industry would attack their customers like this for wanting to negotiate?" asked Lyle Beckwith, NACS senior vice president of government relations. "Only because they have no competition do they have the audacity."
Despite the allegations, NACS continues to push for reform of interchange fees in Congress, and it is "heartened by the desperation these attack ads seem to indicate," it said.
Retailers have taken action against excessive fees, as well. Circle K and 7-Eleven are the most prominent convenience retailers putting petitions in their stores for customers to sign to convey to Congress their displeasure over the costs associated with high credit-card fees, which result in higher prices on retail goods. (Click here for previous CSP Daily News coverage.)
According to its website, "The Electronic Payments Coalition (EPC) includes credit unions, banks and payment card networks that quickly and securely move electronic payments between millions of merchants and millions of consumers across the globe. EPC's goal is to protect the value, innovation, convenience and competition in today's growing electronic payments system. EPC educates policymakers, consumers and the media on the system's role economic growth, and the importance of protecting consumer choice and stability for the continued growth of global commerce."
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