Europay, MasterCard, Visa - Part 1
That’s what EMV stands for - the three companies that created this whole standard that - while still not even a year old in the United States - has been the standard in several other countries around the world. Although the official liability shift began on October 1, 2015, many people have had different attitudes on how fast - and how well - it’s been progressing.
With the liability shift, if there is a case of fraud or something of the sort, then the merchant will be liable if they do not accept EMV chip cards. While some companies were prepared right at the start, other companies are just implementing the EMV compatible terminals, and many have the device but do not accept chip cards yet. For example, at many stores you will see a “credit card” stuck in the chip card slot saying Coming Soon.
It truly is all about your perspective on the matter - for those wanting to make the switch immediately, it can seem a little frustrating that others are just starting to catch on. On the flipside, others realize it really is a process that takes time and acceptance - it can be easily compared to the switch from VHS to DVDs. Even though we eventually picked up on the fact that DVDs were a way of the future - for one, we were used to a VHS, and secondly, it’s not easy to ask someone to buy their favorite movies all over again, just in a different format.
With that understanding in mind, we can appreciate why it takes time. The other obstacle is that merchants don’t want to buy a new EMV compatible terminal if merchants don’t all have chip cards yet, whereas merchant don’t really care about having chip cards as much if all their favorite merchants don’t accept them anyway. Additionally, the merchants will be the ones liable for any fraud - not the consumers. This process will unfold naturally, in the meantime, it’s best to simple educate yourself and your business on the best ways to provide secure and frictionless transactions for your customers. Look out for part 2 of this blog where we’ll discuss the actual security measures behind EMV.
