Conference 7.286::dcu

728.0. "Visa International and Intuit collaboration" by DCEIDL::KEANE (Brian) Mon Dec 06 1993 14:49

This might yield some interesting services for DCU members if
DCU eventually signs on.  

Brian
------------------------

From: [email protected] (Bizwire)

SAN MATEO, CALIF. (DEC. 6) BUSINESS WIRE - Visa International and Intuit Inc.
(NASDAQ:INTU) Monday announced details of their electronic financial services
offering for the banking industry. 

The services will enable a bank-branded, interactive electronic relationship
between Visa member institutions and their customers, using Intuit software
running on a broad variety of computing devices including personal computers
and personal digital assistants (PDAs) beginning in 1994. 

Banc One Corp., First Bank Systems, First National Bank of Omaha, Meridian
Bank and Wells Fargo Bank have already committed to supporting Visa and Intuit
in the development of the new services.  Additional Visa Members are also
expected to announce their participation shortly. 

Among the initial services which Visa member institutions will be able to
offer customers under their own brand names are: 

-- Electronic banking services.  Account balance information and financial
transactions, such as intra-bank funds transfer. 

-- Statement delivery.  Electronic delivery of customer Visa card and checking
account statement information, and automatic account reconciliation. 

-- Access to bank-branded electronic bill payment services. Ability for
consumers to pay any individual or business nationwide. 

Additional services will be added rapidly to accommodate the needs of
participating banks and their customers, according to officials of the two
companies. 

Roger Peirce, executive vice president of Visa International, said "While
there are many electronic banking systems, both existing and proposed, what
makes the Visa/Intuit system unique is more than the coming together of two
leaders.  Our approach uniquely combines the strength of Intuit's easy to use
financial software and Visa's extensive systems and networking capabilities to
enable our Members to provide their customers easy access to personal
financial information and services." 

Peirce continued, "As we have been developing these services, we have been
listening to and working with our Members to ensure that our services meet
individual bank needs.  We believe we have the right combination necessary to
help our Members achieve customer acceptance and adoption of these new service
offerings." 

Scott Cook, president of Intuit, added, "Millions of consumers and small
businesses are eager to have an electronic relationship with their banks, but
the sheer number of banks and technology differences between them have made it
virtually impossible for us to address that desire.  Visa brings the standards
that resolve these differences, as well as the systems, security, stability,
scale -- and, above all, the knowledge of the needs of its thousands of
Members -- that are essential to the creation of an electronic banking system
with the critical mass to succeed." 

Cook continued, "Intuit's mission has alwayse been to automate finances.  Our
software solutions have done this well, delivering not just data, but insight
and understandidng.  Now, our strategic partnership with Visa and its Members,
coupled with advances in communications and computing technologt y, allows us
to fulfill that mission in new and tremendously powerful ways, by giving
people access to their most important fibinancial relationships -- any time,
anywhere." 

Wes Tallman, executive vice president of Visa International, noted that
prelimeinary response from the banking community regarding these services has
been very positive, as evidenced by their enthusiasm and9 participation during
the initial development phase.  He said, "Member institutions see these
services as a logical and valuab5le enhancement to Visa's integrated debit
strategy.  Using their own institution's branding, these services will help
our Memb ers differentiate themselves and forge even stronger relationships
with their customers." 

Under the service mark "IntelliBanking," Intuit will initially provide support
for services through Quicken, the nation's leading personal finance software
program, as well as through QuickBooks, the nation's leading smaall business
accounting software package, and Pocket Quicken, available on an increasing
number of PDAs and other mobile computing platforms. 

Intuit has been at the forefront of electronic financial services for years,
having offered similar functionality in its Quicken products, starting with
its patented Accuret statement reconciliation process in 1987, electronic bill
payment in 1989, and IntelliCharge credit card tracking (patent pending)
introduced in 1992.  Intuit's customer base of over 5 million active users is
more than 6 times larger than that of any other company that makes financial
software. 

Visa is the largest consumer payment system in the world, with more than 10.5
million acceptance locations and 318 million cards issued worldwide, including
160 million in the United States.  Visa also has the leading global ATM
network. 

Intuit develops and markets products and services that enable households and
small businesses to automate commonly performed financial tasks.  Quicken, the
company's original product, allows users to automate their personal finances. 
In April 1992, the company introduced QuickBooks, its first small business
accounting product.  In June 1993, Intuit announced Pocket Quicken for the
Tandy/Casio Zoomer PDA.  To complement Quicken, QuickBooks and its other
software products, Intuit offers a broad range of supplies, including checks, 
invoices and forms.  In addition, the company has a number of service 
offerings, such as IntelliCharge, that work with its software products to
further automate financial tasks. 

-0- 

Note to Editors: 

Quicken and QuickBooks are registered trademarks of Intuit.  Pocket Quicken
and IntelliCharge are trademarks of Intuit.  Other brands or products are
trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders and should be
treated as such. 

--30--jar/sf 

CONTACT: Visa International 
   Gregory Holmes, 415/432-2107 
                   or 
   Intuit 
   Ridgely Evers, 415/329-2771 
                   or 
   Wilson, McHenry Co. 
   Julie McHenry/Jane Gideon, 415/592-7600 

KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: BANKING COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS COMMED  Z 

REPEATS: New York 212-575-8822 or 800-221-2462; Boston 617-330-5311 or 
800-225-2030; SF 415-986-4422 or 800-227-0845; LA 310-820-9473 
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    I'd love it!  I already use my DCU VISA for just about everything. 
    Maybe the credit union could focus the members on electronic services
    instead of ugly, expensive, paper-shuffling services.
    
    Mark

Sounds interesting.  However, they will need to change a few things.  I like
CheckFree and don't mind paying the small fee to use it, BUT there is no way
I am going to PAY to have my credit card bill delivered electronically as
is currently done with the Intuit VISA credit card.  It's a great marketing
trick if you can pull it off...get your customers to pay you to do something
you have to do for free.

Bob

    
    I was always bothered by CheckFree 'mailing' the bills when electronic
    payment was not available.  I'd rather be paying the bills myself thru
    mail and controlling how much float I have.....especially getting my 
    Digital pay doled out a week at a time.
    
    --Bert
    

I agree that it is a good marketing trick to get customers to pay
for something IF it doesn't actually do them any good...

But I'm quite happy to pay a little bit to have my VISA statements
downloaded automatically in to my PC, saving me the time that I'd
otherwise waste in manually entering them.  My time is worth far
more than the few dollars per month that the service of electronically
loading my VISA transactions in to my PC costs from Intuit.

As for "float" - you tell Quicken/Intuit/Checkfree when to pay each
item, so you have as much float as you want, by just telling the
service to pay the bills a little bit later.

-Jay