I can't tell. It's something I've been professionally active about for the past few months, writing about it here on Daily Kos and elsewhere. I keep seeing news stories in local coverage about it -- I do have "interchange" but not much more. An interesting tidbit on the state of the situation and some questions after the jump:
One of the more recent articles about the issue puts
Say a credit card is used. Eat'n Park has to pay the card provider -- such as Visa or MasterCard -- an interchange fee of 45 cents or just under 2 percent, plus a flat fee of about 10 cents.
"The confounding thing is that the majority of that is something we can't negotiate," Wilson said, and the privately held chain of 80 family-style restaurants can't raise prices much without alienating customers.
He'd like to know exactly what the fees pay for and wants to see better rates, considering Eat'n Park's ever-increasing payment volumes.
One of the big problems with the Interchange fee is the lack of transparency. But I digress. After writing about this here from time to time, I'd rather ask some questions:
Have you seen this issue come up before (besides my diaries)? When you hear Interchange, does it mean anything to you?
Does the cause appeal only to merchants? Do people see this in terms of the banks raising the cost of living for everyone? Or is it considered strictly a dispute between businesses that doesn't affect everyone? Is there any reason why this shouldn't appeal to consumer activists?
My own writings on the subject here have been mixed-to-positive in terms of comments, but never seems to pick up any traction. I'm afraid it's just too esoteric and difficult to explain.
Just curious. I'd love to hear what you think.