Re: Digicash will not fly (not)
While Chaum is a brilliant cryptographer, he is an incompetent businessman He has demonstrated this in numerous ways. The latest being "Cash" where the bank skims off 4% to 10% every time. No one is going to use digicash under these kinds of terms and conditions.
Doesn't just about everyone do precisely this when they pay sales tax? Every time a buck arrives or departs a hand one pays a tax yet the system (you and I)continues accepting these terms albeit painfully.
Theoretically, when I pay sales tax I get something in return (better roads, nicer schools, improved NSA wiretaping, and other government services.) With digicash, you're paying for the use of the money itself. What sort of charges do Visa/Mastercard impose upon merchants? I thought it was 3%; if so, I would suspect that this is the level of "off-the-top" skim that the market will sustain, and DigiCash should probably use a similar rate. -- Mike Gebis gebis@ecn.purdue.edu Corporate Operating Systems Still Suck
What sort of charges do Visa/Mastercard impose upon merchants? I thought it was 3%; if so, I would suspect that this is the level of "off-the-top" skim that the market will sustain, and DigiCash should probably use a similar rate.
Not quite 3% in that sense. The rate is varfiable 35 ce3nts plus 3% being typical. The essential point is that this is insurance on the deal. If the buyre does not pay their bill the money is still paid to the merchant. If the goods are faulty the buyer may have recourse against the card co (UK consumer credit act). The charging structure of Digicash should be different however. Digicash is like Mondex, it effectively gives the operator a signorage rights which can be highly profitable in themselves. The cash in the Digicash scheme is earning interest for Mark Twain Bank. Comment heard at the firm "It's time to make another backup of the Internet". :-) Phill
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hallam＠w3.org -
Michael J Gebis