IMGCAP(1)]
Blackstone Merchant Services LLC, a Miami-based independent sales organization, has developed point-of-sale terminal software for Apple Inc.'s iPhone that enables the devices to capture signatures. Cardholders use a finger to sign the receipt, which the company then e-mails to them. The software sells for $19.99 through Apple's iTunes store. Merchants do not have to have a Blackstone merchant account to use the application, but they must have an account with Authorize.Net, an online payment gateway owned by CyberSource Corp. Though Blackstone would not release the merchant rate for transactions made with the software, it says the cost is "equivalent to Internet-based transactions." Wells Fargo Merchant Processing, a unit of Wells Fargo & Co., lists a discount rate of 2.4% of the sale for online credit card transactions. Discount rates include interchange and processor fees. Janet Sancho, Blackstone senior vice president of sales, tells CardLine sister publication ISO&Agent Weekly the signature-capture function can help merchants counter charge-backs. "A signatureless transaction leaves a merchant exposed to possible charge-backs for up to six months after a transaction," Sancho says. "Merchants must present a copy of the signed receipt to easily dispute these charge-backs to avoid losses. Most Internet-based transactions do not allow for the possibility of obtaining a signature." The software uses address-verification services and card verification value codes found on payment cards as further security measures, Sancho says.
