Headlines:
HSBC Offers High-Yield Savings Account
HSBC Holdings PLC of London has introduced a high-yield online savings account in the United States that could challenge other online banks that compete on interest rates, such as ING Bank FSB and Emigrant Bancorp of New York.
HSBC's online account, which went live this month, offers a return of 2.75% on deposits, lower than Emigrant's 3.25% but higher than the 2.6% that the ING Group NV unit is offering.
Though HSBC's account is similar to its rivals', the account holders can withdraw cash at automated teller machines. ING and Emigrant make customers use automated clearing house transactions to transfer money to other accounts. (HSBC also offers ACH transfers.)
Though Martin Glynn, the president and chief executive of HSBC Bank USA, mentioned the new account March 11 at a banking conference, HSBC made no announcement and may not start marketing it for several weeks, a spokesman said.
Microsoft Plans Micropay Feature for Xbox
Microsoft Corp. is planning to include a micropayment feature in the successor of its popular Xbox game system, which could be released by yearend.
Vice president J Allard said it wants players who use Xbox Live, the online gaming network for Xbox fans, to be able to charge virtual items - "a 5 cent tattoo, a $1 car, or a $5 tournament entry fee" - to a credit card. "In the next generation of Live we're going to have a microtransaction system," said Mr. Allard. The system will "take the credit card transaction fees out of the equation" for micropayments so "you don't have to worry about the transaction cost."
Mr. Allard revealed the plan last week in a speech at the 2005 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. He did not elaborate on how the payment system would be structured, and a Microsoft spokesman refused to provide details.
Two million gamers use the Xbox Live service, which costs $7 per month or $49.99 per year. Mr. Allard said people who pay 99 cents to hear their favorite song every time their cell phone rings would also be willing to pay game developers 99 cents to hear that song while blasting aliens in a game or to give their favorite game characters a distinctive look.
"Forget Gen Y; this is not about Gen Y," Mr. Allard said. "This is about the remix generation. What we have now is a consumer generation that wants to leave their fingerprints on everything they touch and their mark on everything they do."
