Visa U.S.A. has introduced a new "smart Visa" card designed to meet what the company calls "the evolving needs of consumers for greater convenience, control and highly personalized services."
Customers can use the card for traditional payment, while benefiting from smart chip technology that
provides added security, utility and convenience. Visa member financial institutions like First USA, FleetBoston Financial Corp. and Providian Financial Corp. have already agreed to implement the new smart Visa program this fall.
Although smart cards are used frequently in other countries, Americans have shown little interest in using them. Steve Fein from Signature Card Systems, for one, is skeptical that smart cards will be successful any time soon, calling them a "technology in search of an application." Making a typical plastic credit card is pretty inexpensive, he added. In comparison, smart cards cost much more to make. "Who's going to pay for the new cards?" he wondered.
Visa U.S.A. is nonetheless pressing ahead with its plans and has begun setting up the system to make it user friendly. To use the smart Visa card, customers first need to obtain a smart card reader, readily available from the issuing institution. First USA, for example, is offering customers the smart card reader for free when they sign up for their First USA smart Visa card. Meanwhile, FleetBoston's version of the card, the FusionTM, comes with one free smart card reader for the first one hundred thousand customers. Apply too late, however, and you'll pay $24.95 plus tax for the reader.
While customers can still make real-world purchases with the 19 million retailers worldwide that already accept Visa, the smart Visa is available for Internet purchases also. Eventually customers will be able use their smart Visa to purchase items over their mobile phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs), too.
Thanks to the smart card chip embedded on each card, cards can be upgraded as new services or features are developed. Information is downloaded through the smart card reader.