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06 Dec 2011 11:23

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Tech: Verizon blocks Google Wallet on “security” concerns

  • Read: Google’s product is competing with our product. Google Wallet has drawn a lot of attention in recent months for its end-to-end reinvention of the paying experience — one that, if it takes off, could make carrying around credit cards a thing of the past. However… the first phone on Verizon’s network that could support the technology behind Google Wallet, the Galaxy Nexus, has the software disabled. The company says they’ve blocked it in an effort to provide “the best security and user experience.” However… Verizon is working with AT&T and T-Mobile on a competing service, Isis, which has yet to launch. Perhaps that’s it? Yeah, we think so. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Sep 2011 20:03

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Tech: Google Wallet opens, but the odds you can actually use it are slim

  • good Google has both Visa and MasterCard on board for its next-generation digital payments system, meaning they have a built-in infrastructure.
  • bad While that infrastructure — in the hundreds of thousands of retail outlets — is pretty big, Visa and MasterCard reach tens of millions of retail outlets.
  • worse In the short-term, only one network — Sprint — sells a device that’s actually compatible with Google Wallet. Own a Sprint Nexus S 4G? You’re in luck. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Dec 2010 13:33

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World: Visa, Mastercard just made it really hard to donate to Wikileaks

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 Sep 2010 12:00

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Tech: Visa’s PayWave + iPhone + NYC Subway = Freaking amazing

  • Whooooosh! Hear that kids? It’s the sound of the future, flying by so fast that you don’t know what hit you. In today’s segment, people use their iPhones with Visa’s spiffy payWave service and pay to hit the New York Subway with their phones. Radical! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Aug 2010 19:26

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Biz: General Motors’ IPO is pretty big, but it likely won’t be the biggest

  • $12-16 billion the amount GM’s upcoming IPO is expected to raise
  • $19.7
    billion     the amount Visa’s 2008 IPO, the largest ever, raised source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 May 2010 10:36

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Biz: Don’t expect credit companies to give up the war on card fees

  • They plan to keep fighting for them. The interchange fees, which merchants often complain about as being too high for certain transactions, could put a big crimp in Visa and MasterCard’s bottom line if regulated as part of a broader financial reform package. “We lost this battle. It’s a big battle,” said MasterCard’s President for U.S. Markets Chris McWilton. “But the war wages on and we’ll be working really hard over the next week or so to stop this.” If you own a small business, watch this battle. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 May 2010 10:55

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Biz: Credit-card makers hit hard by the Senate’s debit-card changes

  • -8.5% decline in Visa’s stock since the Senate passed the changes last night
  • -7.5% decline in MasterCard’s stock; the amendment limits card fees source
  • » Other companies: Visa and MasterCard felt it the worst, but they weren’t alone. American Express and Capital One also fell sharply in trading this morning due to the amendment’s unexpected passage, which limits the fees card companies can charge merchants. It still needs to go through the House as part of the broader financial reform bill.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

21 May 2009 09:15

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Offbeat: Love, immigration status tear mayor apart from Texas city

  • It’s true love, but his gay lover needs a visa. J.W. Lown, the mayor of San Angelo, Texas, stepped down from his position abruptly yesterday, preferring not to use his power to help his boyfriend in Mexico make it to the U.S. before others. Lown was a very popular mayor in San Angelo, and was last elected to office with 89% of the vote. He holds dual citizenship in the U.S. and Mexico. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 Mar 2009 10:18

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U.S., World: South Africa has some pretty lame people in charge of visas

  • A group in South Africa wants to hold a peace conference, and they invited Tibetian spiritual leader the Dalai Lama to come. source
  • South Africa denies him a visa out of fear that his visit might overshadow the 2010 World Cup, which they’re hosting. WTF? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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