EU Banking Industry - Credit and Debit Cards: EU backs cap on bank card transaction fees

The European Parliament has backed a deal to cut costs for people who use debit and credit cards to shop
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EU officials want to cap the fees retailers pay to process card transactions as an increasing amount of customers are choosing to use cards rather than cash.

If the accord is approved, there will be a 0.2 percent ceiling on the amount banks can charge for debit card payments.

For credit card purchases, the maximum level will be 0.3 percent of the total amount.

It is estimated some 760 million payment cards are used throughout the EU with the average amount spent around 49 euros.

The new rules could come into force by the end of the year and will apply to both cross-border and domestic card-based payments which costs businesses around Europe an estimated 10-billion euros a year.

Some consumer groups have expressed fear that banks may try to claw back some of the costs through other charges.

Note EU-Digest: Good job EU Parliament ! Lets hope US Banks will also be forced to cut their charges for debit and credit card transactions by the US Congress, but it is not likely. Using an a debit card in the US at a location different from the one issued by your bank will incur from $1.50 to $ 3.00 per transaction. Charges for using your US Credit card for purchases or cash withdrawals will range between 3 to 8% of the transaction amount.

Read more: EU backs cap on bank card transactions | euronews, economy

Mergers an anti-dote for competitive pricing - Consumers wary of Comcast, Time Warner Cable merger

Consumer advocates, industry analysts and cable customers wasted little time Thursday in airing concerns about the blockbuster deal to combine Comcast and Time Warner Cable, the nation's two largest cable companies.

The $45 billion deal, if approved by federal regulators, would result in a total customer base of 30 million subscribers and could bring technological advances to the world of cable TV and high-speed internet.

But the proposed merger comes at a time when customer satisfaction with the cable TV industry — and the two companies in particular — is low. Last year, Comcast and Time Warner Cable came in dead last in an industry consumer satisfaction survey performed by the American Customer Satisfaction Index.

Time Warner Cable has had numerous customer service and operational issues that have hampered its reputation, exacerbated last year by its high-profile fight with and decision to drop CBS over retransmission fees. This ire was seen across social-media sites such as Twitter and Facebook Thursday, as users voiced concern about the megamerger.

The merger would give Comcast the leverage to demand higher fees from programmers, such as HBO and AMC, and would also likely result in higher fees for consumers, he said. The new megacompany could more readily drop smaller programmers, such as IFC, who don't agree to new payment schemes, leading to fewer channel choices for viewers.

Note EU-Digest: as we have seen with the airline industry mergers these mega-mergers do not lead to competitive pricing but rather to increased pricing and bad customer service

Read more: Consumers wary of Comcast, Time Warner Cable merger

The Netherlands: Prisoners to pay €16 a day for their time in jail: Ministry of Justice says

One person Dutch Prison cell

The Dutch Government is planning to make convicted criminals pay towards the cost of the investigation into their crimes as well as a fee for each day they spend in jail.

The justice ministry said in a statement on Monday it is to introduce a charge of €16 a day for prisoners, people in psychiatric prison and the parents of juveniles in detention.

Prisoners and parents would be liable to pay the charge for a maximum two years, costing them up to €11,680.

Read more: DutchNews.nl - Prisoners to pay €16 a day for their time in jail: justice ministry

Education:Studying in Europe, low fees and more choice - by Louise Holden

Increasing numbers of Irish students and their parents are looking beyond Ireland for higher-level education: not just the traditional hop across the pond, and not just in search of hard-to-access programs such as medicine and veterinary. 

Patrick Orr has just started a three-year degree programme in liberal arts and science in Utrecht. As he approached his Leaving Cert in Sandford Park School in Ranelagh, Dublin 6, he became increasingly frustrated with the offerings available through the CAO.

“I come from a family of doctors and I’m interested in medicine, but I didn’t want to tie myself to a career too early because I also have a keen interest in the arts,” he says. “I was looking for a course that was more open and that combined science and humanities and an element of choice. I just couldn’t find it in the Irish system.”

Orr’s aunt lectures in linguistics in Utrecht, in the Netherlands, and she drew his attention to a programme in her college that offered all the subjects he was looking for and the chance to specialise as he went along. The course is taught through English, along with hundreds of degree and masters-level courses right across Europe.

“I have so many interests and don’t want to pigeonhole myself into a profession at 18 years of age,” says Orr, who also has a keen interest in music and has worked as a band technician as well as performing. “This year I’m studying philosophy, literature and physics. I’m also taking a module in research and academic skills. 

Over the course of this year I’ll take modules in anthropology, mathematics and sociology. There are loads of options and I don’t have to specialise until further into the degree. It’s very exciting to consider all the possible qualifications I could come out with.”

Traveling to the Netherlands wasn’t a major upheaval for Patrick; he’s a keen traveller and has spent many summers with relatives in Europe. “I really liked the idea of studying in the Netherlands. It’s an interesting country and the system is well-developed for this kind of teaching. This university seemed the best one, although I applied to others as well. I was offered a place on my chosen course in Utrecht even before I sat the Leaving Cert.”

Read more: Studying in Europe: Low fees, more choice - Education News | Primary, Secondary & Third Level | The Irish Time - Tue, Nov 12, 2013

The Netherlands: Facts And Figures About Dutch Higher Education

The Erasmus University in Rotterdam

A student born in what is called the "European Space" which includes the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles pays a standard fee per annum, valid at every Dutch Institution of higher learning, of 1.835 euro plus a 500 euro educational material fee (books etc.) p/a  The level of the annual fee is set by the government on a yearly basis.

Financial Student Aid in the Netherlands is a mix of Government grants and loans which amount to a total of euro 960.87 p/a if the student lives outside the parental home, or euro 765.80 if the student lives at home. University students who can show proof of enrollment in a certified institution of higher learning are also eligible for a free public transport and railway pass valid for the academic year they are enrolled in.

Students have to show proof of academic progress on a yearly basis in order to qualify for the continuation of grants, loans, etc.

Insurance: Every Dutch citizen who reaches the age of 18 years (including students) has to be enrolled in the national health insurance program with a basic minimum fee of 87 euro per month. Students of parents who earn less than the minimum established yearly income can apply for additional grants in support of their children's education.

There are also various opportunities for Dutch Nationals to study abroad. For additional information: http://www.fulbright.nl/, http://www.wilweg.nl/, http://www.wilweg.nl/financiering/beursopener

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