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CARDNEWS FOR CONSUMERS
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(10/31/02)
Gift Cards
Nearly eight of ten Americans are aware of gift cards and how they work.
A new survey shows that 37% of U.S. consumers have purchased or received a gift card in the past 12 months.
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(10/29/02)
Target Schools
Eight million Target cardholders have generated a total of $26 million for K-12 schools so far this year. Under the Target "School Fundraising" program, cardholders designate the eligible school of their choice to receive an amount equal to 1% of their "Target smart VISA" or "Target Guest Card" purchases made at Target and target.com.
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(10/28/02)
Holiday Gift Spending
A recent survey shows that Americans expect to spend nearly 8% less on holiday gifts than they did a year ago ($968 this year, compared with $1,042/a last year). The study also showed that 90% of the consumers surveyed expect to pay off their holiday credit card debt within six months but, last year, only 45% of consumers paid off their holiday credit card within that time frame.
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(10/25/02)
Diamond Card
Move over Platinum and Titanium cards, Diamond cards have arrived. Citibank recently introduced its no annual fee "Diamond Preferred Rewards MasterCard" offering a single digit interest rate, a points program, and special discounts.
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(10/24/02)
Wealthy Debt
Outstanding credit-card debt has increased by 177% since 1992, for households with annual incomes of $75,000 or more. Affluent households have also taken on more auto loans and home equity loans during the same period.
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(10/23/02)
Juicy Profits
Thanks to lower funding costs, expiration of teaser rates, and subsiding losses, credit card profits have continue to soar this year. Last week, four top issuers reported combined profits of more than $1.1 billion for the third calendar quarter.
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(10/22/02)
Late Payers
A recent survey of more than 1,000 consumers found that one-fourth of Americans pay at least one bill late each month and that households with children are 75% more likely to miss a payment than those without.
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(10/21/02)
Bank One Branding
The "First USA" credit card brand name is going the way of the Edsel. Bank One is officially burying the "First USA" brand name with a new ad campaign that started over the weekend.
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(10/17/02)
Teen Recession
Spending among "Gen Y" has been dropping over the past twelve months. Annual spending among teens was $1,154, down from $1,536 in fall 2001. In spring 2002, yearly spending was $1,542.
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(10/16/02)
Undecided Consumers
The economic uncertainty continues to impact consumer travel. Nearly 80% of respondents to a Hotwire survey said they have yet to book December holiday travel, with 61% planning to put off the task until at least November.
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(10/15/02)
AmEx Gift Card
Gift cards are getting bigger and better this holiday season. American Express has unveiled a gift card available in amounts from $25 to $500 which can be purchased through the American Express Web site.
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(10/11/02)
Entertainment Card
American use of consumer credit continues to gather steam as data for August shows a remarkable increase in the rate of
The pioneer of the megaplex theatre and a moviegoer rewards program is introducing a stored-value gift card to replace traditional movie gift certificates. AMC Entertainment also inked a deal to distribute its new card through a number of supermarket chains, including Safeway.
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(10/10/02)
Debt Rebound?
American use of consumer credit continues to gather steam as data for August shows a remarkable increase in the rate of growth compared to one year ago. During August of this year, consumers added nearly $4 billion to revolving credit compared to a pay-down of more than $4.5 billion during August 2001.
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(10/9/02)
Rates Notch Up
Credit card interest rates have slowly but surely been nudging up this year despite the stable rate environment. The rate increase is driven largely by the punitive rate policies of many of the nation's top issuers, including MBNA which now charges rates as high as 24.98%.
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(10/8/02)
Mall Gift Cards
The paper gift certificate has become a dinosaur as plastic gift cards take over. One of the largest mall owners in the country says its "VISA Gift Card" program has been a smash. Simon Property Group announced this month it is expanding its "VISA Gift Card" program to 43 shopping malls with a complete rollout scheduled to hundreds of other Simon malls next year.
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(10/7/02)
Eufora Cards
No it's not multi-level marketing or a pyramid program, but it's a way to get cash flow by getting your friends and family to sign up and use a new credit card. The new "Eufora MasterCard" creates an incremental income opportunity for cardholders through an innovative agent referral fee program.
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(10/4/02)
Mini Card
Bank of America has decided to chop its credit cards in half with the launch of a mini VISA. The new card is about half the size of a regular credit or debit card and can be attached to a key chain. The mini VISA card, which is being offered as a companion to full-sized credit and debit cards (it will share the same account number), is initially being distributed to select existing BofA consumer credit cardholders.
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(10/3/02)
Gold Miles
After upgrading its "United Mileage Plus VISA" card to the "VISA Signature" class last year, Bank One and United Airlines have now added a "Gold" version. The new "United Mileage Plus Gold Class VISA" with "VISA Signature" benefits, offers no pre-spending limit, enabling cardholders to exceed their established credit lines based on payment activity.
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(10/2/02)
PayOff Promo
Want your Discover Card balance paid-in-full? Between now and December 24, Discover is offering its 50 million cardholders a chance to win a balance pay-off at the start of 2003. The "Ring in the Rewards with Discover Card" promotion features a sweepstakes with ten "Balance Paid in Full" (up to $10,000) grand prizes.
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(10/1/02)
Web Incentives
As it faces financial woes and a cut back in its brick-and-mortar operations, United Airlines is offering incentives to book online with a credit card. The incentives include bonus miles, special fares, and an opportunity to win new BMW or 50,000 miles.
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