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Grex > Coop8 > #28: Credit Card Payment and First Virtual | |
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janc
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Credit Card Payment and First Virtual
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Feb 22 02:45 UTC 1996 |
At the last board meeting there was some discussion about how Grex could
accept credit card payments, the problem being that it apparantly costs a lot
to get set up to do so.
The River is making use of an organization called "First Virtual" to do this.
It's a fairly low-tech approach to doing credit-card purchases over the net.
Buyer's and sellers each need to first create accounts with First Virtual.
Buyers must give a credit-card number, and are given a sort of password which
they can then use to securely make purchases over the net (Instead of sending
a credit card number around). Buyer accounts cost $2 to start, with no other
fees.
If Grex wanted to do this, we'd have to set up a seller account. We need to
give our checking account number, and pay $10 to start up it up. First
Virtual electronically deposits the sum of each purchase in our bank account,
having deducted a transacton fee. The fee is 29 cents, plus 2% of the
purchase price, so they would take 41 cents out of a $6 monthly fee, or
$1.49 out of a $60 annual fee. In addition, they charge $1.00 for each
deposit they make. They delay making the payment 91 days after the purchase.
I don't know how much they clump up the deposits, so I have no idea how many
$1 settlement fees we'd end up paying. It's probably in their info somplace.
This thing is set up so that once buyer and seller have accounts, everything
can be done electronically, through email or the web.
The have tons of information available at http://www.fv.com . You can
also get tons of information by mailing info@fv.com .
It appears that international people can pay through this.
This obviously has some negatives. The whole point is that if people can
pay by credit card they may be more willing to pay, but with this they would
have to first set up a FV account, and figure out how FV works which starts
making it clumsy again.
Are we interested in this? Are there other alternatives?
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| 14 responses total. |
steve
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response 1 of 14:
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Feb 22 03:02 UTC 1996 |
There are alternatives, but I don't know much at all about them.
It sounds like their prices are fairly reasonable--certainly a LOT
less than we'd wind up paying to cash an international check, for
example.
Do I get it right that after someone gives them the money for
something, we might not get that money for up to 91 days? If thats
right I wonder if thats how they make their money--free loans to
them, basically or is there a technical reason for that?
All in all, I'd say that if we can find someplace to do this,
we should try it out. The $4 or so for two new people every month
isn't much, espically if the conveinence of paying by CC is what
got them to fork over a membership in the first place.
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tsty
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response 2 of 14:
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Feb 22 08:43 UTC 1996 |
ummmmm, the offer above might seem like "not to bad" and it *may* be
the "only game in town," idunno, but that is a darn tough rip as far as
i know. Sure, it's only 2% plus a fixed fee, but 91 days??????
If we are interested, we ought to go through the (gasp) Chamber of Commerce
arrangelemt instead.
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janc
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response 3 of 14:
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Feb 23 17:59 UTC 1996 |
They say the 91 days is because the credit card companies allow people do
damand their money back for 91 days. It is probably one of the places they
make their money.
I'd want details on how often they make deposits before I'd want to say this
is reasonable. Taking $1 out of each $6 would be a problem.
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gregc
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response 4 of 14:
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Feb 23 19:14 UTC 1996 |
Actually, you can request a "Charge-Back" from most credit card companies
up to 6 months after a purchase and sometimes up to a year.
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kaplan
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response 5 of 14:
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Feb 23 23:59 UTC 1996 |
I wonder if credit cards would be reluctant to deal with grex as a merchant
because our cash flow and assets are so tiny.
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adbarr
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response 6 of 14:
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Feb 24 00:24 UTC 1996 |
Talk to your banker.
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tsty
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response 7 of 14:
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Feb 26 07:45 UTC 1996 |
the companies that i deal with get *immediate* MC and VISA credited
to the account, NOT any 91 day delay (sputter-sputter!) Gawd, that's
terrible!
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ajax
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response 8 of 14:
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Feb 26 18:18 UTC 1996 |
They probably do a more thorough background check than "send us $10!" :-).
I just read a review of four digital cash systems. DigiCash sounded like
probably the simplest for the vendor. My feeling is that any of them
would be used fairly rarely. It's a neat idea, and if Mark has an interest
in setting it up, great, but I don't see it as a must-do.
One aspect of credit cards that is useful is the "bill my credit card
monthly until I say to stop" option, used by on-line services. It may
keep members who would otherwise let their membership lapse.
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tsty
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response 9 of 14:
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Feb 28 10:05 UTC 1996 |
ever tryto STOP that "bill me until ...." crap? With the single
exception of a "vital service," i will *never* allow the start of "bill
me until ..." And expecially on a credit card .....
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aruba
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response 10 of 14:
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Mar 3 04:26 UTC 1996 |
Re #8: Where can one find that review, Rob?
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ajax
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response 11 of 14:
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Mar 3 07:21 UTC 1996 |
The Internet Business Guide, 2nd edition, pages 254-262, on "The
Rise of Digital Cash." I can loan it to you, or it's short enough
to read it at Borders without their tossing you out :-). Yellow
spine with black text, published by Sams.net (I hate that name!).
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ajax
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response 12 of 14:
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Aug 20 20:39 UTC 1996 |
I came across a company that takes check payments over the web.
The user enters checking account information on a secure web form,
then the company issues a check to you from the user, which it
mails in a batch at the end of the month. Meanwhile, it e-mails
the amount of the payment to you. The service costs $39 per six
months, plus $1 per check.
This seems like a low-tech way of accepting on-line payments.
It basically saves the customer having to get off their butt,
physically write a check, and mail it. If it would result in Grex
selling an extra membership per six month period, that we wouldn't
get otherwise, it would pay for itself. I kind of think the
on-line transaction's allure would inspire some extra payments,
but you never know.
For more information, the company's web page on this service is
http://www.webcs.com/checks/checking.html.
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selena
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response 13 of 14:
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Aug 21 04:09 UTC 1996 |
yeah, but if they just send in a six-dollar one month check, without
continuing their monthly donation thereafter, you' lose big!
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tsty
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response 14 of 14:
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Aug 21 05:27 UTC 1996 |
the offer for MC/VISA processing is, of course, still open here ... i
checked with my partner; it'll cost $0.50 per transaction which includes
a verification of 'valid card' and 'sufficient credit available.'
after-the-fact bounces are one of the little gotchas that *might* (but
i really doubt it) occur. whatever reimbursement involves would be
borne by grex.
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