Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by ivan_gammel on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @03:21AM
(#23687541)
I live in Berlin and recommendations to pay by card can be seen in many places with preference for contactless payment. In fact, share of non-cash payments visibly increased here and surveys show that German attitude is already changing.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by dorgo on Wednesday July 01, 2020 @02:38AM
(#23698449)
Maybe this is temporarily? I pay with card now. But intend to go back to cash after covid19.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by dx034 on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @03:31AM
(#23687593)
Germany has seen a huge shift over the past months. Before that, paying by card for small ticket items such as in bakerys was frowned upon (or just not possible), now it's used by the majority in some areas.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by hanche on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @08:12AM
(#23689261)
In Norway, it is still illegal for stores to refuse cash. I know of only one store that does get away with it; I believe they do because they are primarily an online shop. Their physical store is merely a convenience for customers who happen to live nearby. Many (most?) stores still ask customers to pay with a card, though. To help out, the banks have raised the maximum amount payable by contactless cards without PIN entry.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by LeonidasXIV on Wednesday July 01, 2020 @06:02AM
(#23699787)
It is technically illegal to not accept cash in Denmark with very few exceptions (I checked, since it seems to be legal in Sweden), but maybe due to COVID-19 this got relaxed or is just not enforced anymore. Not that anyone would notice, nobody pays with cash anyway except for German tourists who aren't coming this year.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by Aeolun on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @09:00AM
(#23689542)
I feel like this is probably a good thing. Cash payments are a very healthy thing to have in addition to digital payments.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by tr352 on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @07:01AM
(#23688820)
I live in Germany at the moment and I do see this in many places. On the other hand there are also still shops where showing my card gets me a puzzling look as if I'm some kind of time traveller visiting from the future armed with my mysterious shiny plastic card.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by bjelkeman-again on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @06:45AM
(#23688742)
In Stockholm, Sweden, many stores have stopped accepting cash altogether. Even before Covid.
Re:Forget Google, time to end the Visa-MasterCard duopoly
by mnw21cam on Tuesday June 30, 2020 @07:41AM
(#23689067)
In Gothenberg, Sweden, for instance, you can't buy public transport tickets with cash. Which meant that when a beggar approached me and asked for some cash so he could travel home, I knew he was lying. I hadn't even bothered getting any Swedish cash when I visited the country.
On a recent trip to Germany, I didn't see a single such sign.
Germany is changing gradually, perhaps due to the EU's limits on the fees Visa and MasterCard can change, but Covid-19 doesn't seem to have much effect.