Altering card-issuer interchange categories
AssigneePE Systems
InventorsAlan Wayne McElroy, Thomas P. Parrish, Kelly Birr
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
This document describes tools capable of determining ways in which to alter interchange categories assigned to credit-card transactions. In some embodiments, the tools receive parameters for interchange categories and transaction information for merchants that have been charged interchange fees based on some of these categories. The tools may determine, based on these parameters and transaction information, how parameters may be changed to enable similar credit-card transactions to be assigned a lower-cost interchange category and the accompanying potential fee savings.
Claims20
One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-readable instructions therein that, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform acts comprising:
- receiving, by the computing device, interchange categories, their pricing, and one or more of their parameters, their parameters including one or more of:
- a merchant's area of business;
- information received for a transaction;
- how the information is received for the transaction;
- or a type of card used in the transaction;
- receiving, by the computing device, transaction information for a particular merchant, the transaction information indicating one or more current transactions having been assigned a first interchange category of the received interchange categories;
- determining, by the computing device, that a second interchange category having a lower cost than the first interchange category and also of the received interchange categories is potentially assignable to the one or more current transactions or future transactions similar to the one or more current transactions by making a change in information that is provided by the particular merchant to determine one or more of the parameters;
- determining, by the computing device, a potential fee savings based on the received interchange categories and their pricing if the one or more current transactions assigned the first interchange category were instead assigned the second interchange category;
- and
- providing, by the computing device, the change in information to a client.
One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-readable instructions therein that, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform acts comprising:
- receiving, by the computing device, interchange categories currently being assigned by card issuers, pricing for each interchange category, and parameters used to determine which transactions should be assigned which interchange category, the parameters including one or more of:
- a particular merchant's area of business;
- information received for transactions;
- or how information is received for the transactions;
- determining, by the computing device and for interchange categories having or allowing the particular merchant' s area of business and based on the pricing of these interchange categories, higher-cost interchange categories capable of being replaced by lower-cost interchange categories;
- determining, by the computing device, one or more changes in information that is provided by the particular merchant to determine one or more of the parameters or the how the information is received effective to cause each of the lower-cost interchange categories to be assigned instead of each of the higher-cost interchange categories;
- and
- providing, by the computing device, the one or more changes in information to a client effective to enable a merchant associated with the client and having the particular merchant's area of business to lower its interchange category fees.
One or more computer-readable storage media having computer-readable instructions therein that, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform acts comprising:
- receiving, by the computing device and for a particular business area, a change in information used to determine a parameter capable of replacing a higher-cost interchange category with a lower-cost interchange category;
- receiving, by the computing device, credit-card transaction data for a merchant having the particular business area, the credit-card transaction data indicating that transactions for the merchant are assigned the higher-cost interchange category;
- determining, by the computing device, a potential fee savings if the lower-cost interchange category were assigned to the transactions instead of the higher-cost interchange category;
- and
- providing, by the computing device and to a client, the change in information used to determine the parameter.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.