? ?
Opinion / Liang Hongfu
Stored-value cards problem
By Hong Liang (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-09-15 07:25
One of the things about Hong Kong that seems to impress my mainland
friends most is the Octopus stored-value card, which allows the holder to
conveniently move around the city on various modes of public transport,
other than taxis.
For years, Octopus has had a virtual monopoly on Hong Kong's stored-value
card business. It was perhaps for this reason that the real potential of
stored-value card has never been fully exploited in Hong Kong. Popular as
it is, Octopus' reach in the retail sector is still limited to
convenience stores and a few shopping outlets.
The monopoly issue was brought to the forefront in recent months when
holders complained about the failure to add value to their Octopus cards
through the Electronic Payment System. Such complaints, which indicated
Hong Kong people's diminishing tolerance toward the limitations of
monopolies, moved the city's monetary chief Joseph Yam to write: "It is
becoming increasingly clear that whether there is a need for separation
of the management of the platform and the issue of stored-value cards is
an important issue to be considered and debated."
The free market approach, long cherished by the Hong Kong government,
has, ironically, produced monopolies in both the processing of
stored-value cards and issuing the cards. Although Octopus has been
widely seen as a success, the lack of competition can inhibit Hong Kong's
ambition to develop what Yam describes as "the most efficient electronic
money system in the world."
Of course, it all comes down to a matter of choice. "They (Hong Kong
people) probably do not mind choosing between different stored-value
cards, if offered a choice, to suit their own preferences," Yam noted in
his latest column published on the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's website.
Many users are happy with Octopus because they don't intend to use it for
any other purpose than paying for a ride in the subway or the bus. But,
as Yam notes, there are those who want to use "one card for multiple
non-financial purposes, while others (are) more interested in the
convenience of uploading money easily and safely in the card from their
bank accounts."
Some people might want to have a variety of stored-value cards for no
other purpose than to show off their economic status. In that respect,
stored-value cards are "arguably superior," according to Yam, to credit
cards that don't necessarily say anything about the holder's net worth.
As consumers, we would want to be able to use any stored-value card we
may choose at any store or restaurant we care to patronize. But we
wouldn't be able to do that unless there is a common platform for
processing the cards by different issuers.
Such a platform would also be welcomed by retailers because they would
not be required to keep multiple devices needed to process the many
different cards at each point of sale.
The logical approach would be to expand the present limited platform into
an universal retail payment system, which would, in turn, encourage
competition in card issuing. On this, the government has maintained an
open mind. "I have no pre-conceived idea on the ownership and management
of the common platform, provided that there are adequate checks and
balances, transparently observed and monitored, to protect the public
interest," Yam wrote.
It is not clear whether the cost of establishing a common stored-card
processing platform, which could be undertaken by a consortium of banks,
can be recovered from interest saved in money stored in the cards rather
than in deposit accounts. Even if there is going to be a charge for using
the service, the Hong Kong public is not going to fret too much about
paying a reasonable price for the convenience of electronic money.
E-mail: jamesleung@chinadaily.com.cn
(China Daily 09/15/2007 page4)
Hot Talks
* What's your take of this piece of opinion about China?
* Should Beida recruit more recommended students?
* Nude women and Peking Opera: pornography or art?
* War in Iraq lost?
* Costa Rica cut ties with Taiwan: Who's next?
Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours
Learn Chinese, Learning Chinese, Learning Materials, Mandarin audio lessons, Chinese writing lessons, Chinese vocabulary lists, About chinese characters, News in Chinese, Go to China, Travel to China, Study in China, Teach in China, Dictionaries, Learn Chinese Painting, Your name in Chinese, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese songs, Chinese proverbs, Chinese poetry, Chinese tattoo, Beijing 2008 Olympics, Mandarin Phrasebook, Chinese editor, Pinyin editor, China Travel, Travel to Beijing, Travel to Tibet
No comments:
Post a Comment