• The ATM Industry Association issued an updated position paper in support of variable surcharges, or so-called “convenience fees,” for ATM transactions; the trade group says global network policies effectively force ATM deployers to assess uniform surcharges despite differences in network interchange rates and fees, and that the coming of …

By Jim Daly@DTPaymentNews The ATM Industry Association on Monday issued a position paper that once again calls for freedom for deployers to set variable surcharges. The Sioux Falls, S.D.-based trade group took that stance a decade ago, but the coming of EMV chip cards to the U.S. makes the surcharging …

By Jim Daly@DTPaymentNews Dollars loaded onto closed-loop gift cards fell 9% in 2015, according to new research from Mercator Advisory Group Inc. But one major prepaid card issuer, Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc., franchisor of Dunkin’ Donuts and Baskin Robbins stores, reports that its DD Perks loyalty program now has more …

• VeriFone Systems Inc. released an updated version of the EMV application for point-of-sale terminals used on processor Total System Services Inc.’s network that now includes EMV tip adjust among other functions. • ClickBid, a provider of mobile-bidding technology, says it is using hosted fields from Braintree, a unit of PayPal …

By Jim Daly@DTPaymentNews Two hotel and resort chains this week reported apparent data breaches involving payment cards used at their locations. These latest compromises come less than two weeks after compromise occurred between early March and mid-June. Millennium, which has 14 luxury or boutique U.S. properties, isolated and then took …

By John Stewart@DTPaymentNews The big banks that run clearXchange are getting around to slapping a brand name on the peer-to-peer payments network, five years after founding it. The new name is going to be Zelle, confirms a spokesperson for Early Warning Services LLC, the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based fraud-management company that real-time …

• The clearXchange peer-to-peer payments network will be renamed Zelle, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. The service is operated by Early Warning Services LLC, which is owned by some of the nation’s biggest banks. • Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. marked the first anniversary of its Samsung …

By Jim Daly@DTPaymentNews In new court filings, Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. are denying the antitrust allegations that The Home Depot Inc. leveled against them in a June lawsuit. That’s no surprise, but the networks’ responses leave some arcane network fees shrouded in mystery. Visa and MasterCard filed answers to …

By Kevin Woodward@DTPaymentNews Chip-on-chip transaction volume continues to rise as the United States payments industry nears the one-year mark since the Oct. 1, 2015, liability shift, totaling 554.8 million in July, a 26% increase from 440.1 million in May, Visa Inc. announced Tuesday. Since November, Visa’s chip-on-chip transactions have more …

• Paytronix Systems Inc., a provider of loyalty solutions to restaurants and retailers, announced it has added a mobile pay-at-table capability for eateries that includes the ability to redeem rewards. • In related news, terminal maker Ingenico Group teamed with middleware vendor Datacap Systems to install a pay-at-table system based …