Karen, Great Article. As CIO for a mid size convenient store chain I so agree with your comments in this article. Especially the below statement. Within the last couple of years we have developed and implemented our own company APP that includes mobile payment. As a company we wanted our customers to recognize our brand when using the APP and mobile payment and not to think in terms of "hey I can use this at Walmart to buy this same product".

Bottom line: The promise of cheap interchange – someday – seems like a pretty tough sell to Retailer A when the overriding fear is, “yes, but am I setting myself up for Retailer B to steal my customers?” The marketing guys would say that paying $1.00 on a $100 sale is better than paying $.10 on a $0 sale – not just one time, but forever if that customer is lost to Retailer B.