- Sep 26, 2000
- 28,559
- 4
- 0
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/05/business/05card.html?hp
U.S. Reaches Deal in Credit-Card Antitrust Suit
WASHINGTON (AP) The Justice Department on Monday sued the three largest credit card companies for anticompetitive practices and reached a proposed settlement with two of them, MasterCard and Visa.
We want to put more money in consumers pockets, and by eliminating credit card companies anticompetitive rule, we will accomplish exactly that, Attorney General Eric H. Holder told an afternoon news conference. The companies put merchants and their customers in a no-win situation and consumers are being held hostage.
In papers filed in federal court in Brooklyn, the department and various state attorneys general sued Visa, MasterCard and American Express, saying they were trying to insulate themselves from competition.
At the same time, the Justice Department filed a proposed settlement with Visa and MasterCard.
Under the proposed settlement, Visa and MasterCard agree not to prohibit merchants from offering customers discounts or rebates for using a particular kind of card.
The lawsuit says the card companies are impeding merchants from promoting the use of competing credit or charge cards with lower acceptance fees.
Each time consumers use a credit card, the merchant must pay a fee. Such fees brought in $35 billion last year to the three credit card companies and their affiliated banks.
Were partway there with the proposed agreement with Visa and MasterCard, Christine Varney, an assistant attorney general who heads the departments antitrust division, told the news conference.
Ms. Varney added that her division remained open to seeking a settlement with American Express. But in a statement, the chairman and chief executive of American Express, Kenneth I. Chenault, said, We have no intention of settling the case.
We are confident that the courts will recognize the perverse anticompetitive nature of the governments case, Mr. Chenault said, and that we will continue providing a competitive, superior service to card members and merchants.
Actually, as a small business owner I have not accepted credit cards because I felt the fees were too high.
Perhaps now with some competition I may be able to afford to.
U.S. Reaches Deal in Credit-Card Antitrust Suit
WASHINGTON (AP) The Justice Department on Monday sued the three largest credit card companies for anticompetitive practices and reached a proposed settlement with two of them, MasterCard and Visa.
We want to put more money in consumers pockets, and by eliminating credit card companies anticompetitive rule, we will accomplish exactly that, Attorney General Eric H. Holder told an afternoon news conference. The companies put merchants and their customers in a no-win situation and consumers are being held hostage.
In papers filed in federal court in Brooklyn, the department and various state attorneys general sued Visa, MasterCard and American Express, saying they were trying to insulate themselves from competition.
At the same time, the Justice Department filed a proposed settlement with Visa and MasterCard.
Under the proposed settlement, Visa and MasterCard agree not to prohibit merchants from offering customers discounts or rebates for using a particular kind of card.
The lawsuit says the card companies are impeding merchants from promoting the use of competing credit or charge cards with lower acceptance fees.
Each time consumers use a credit card, the merchant must pay a fee. Such fees brought in $35 billion last year to the three credit card companies and their affiliated banks.
Were partway there with the proposed agreement with Visa and MasterCard, Christine Varney, an assistant attorney general who heads the departments antitrust division, told the news conference.
Ms. Varney added that her division remained open to seeking a settlement with American Express. But in a statement, the chairman and chief executive of American Express, Kenneth I. Chenault, said, We have no intention of settling the case.
We are confident that the courts will recognize the perverse anticompetitive nature of the governments case, Mr. Chenault said, and that we will continue providing a competitive, superior service to card members and merchants.
Actually, as a small business owner I have not accepted credit cards because I felt the fees were too high.
Perhaps now with some competition I may be able to afford to.
Facebook
Twitter