This doesn't have anything immediately to do with payments - but it's potentially relevant and interesting nonetheless. Kwikset has introduced SmartScan, what the company calls "the world’s first residential biometric keyless entry system."

comScore Networks has released the results of a study examining the share of the online High Yield Savings market among key players and the impact of recent rate changes on this marketplace. According to comScore, "the market for high yield savings accounts has become increasingly competitive during the past year, as evidenced by the emergence of new players and subsequent marketplace fragmentation. While ING Direct held a commanding share of new online savings account application submissions in Q4 2005 (53 percent), its share dropped to 25 percent during the same time period in 2006. Meanwhile, newer players like Citibank and Washington Mutual, which each held a negligible share of the market in Q4 2005, increased their share to 19 percent and 17 percent, respectively by Q4 2006."

PlasticEconomy.com is tracking the consumer credit card debt of a number of consumers who have signed up for their service and who periodically provide their outstanding balance, minimum payment amount, interest rate, and due date for the credit cards they hold. Among other things, they report on the level of household credit card debt and the average APRs charged on a state by state basis. As of this morning, this data is based on information totaling almost $2 million in credit card debt.

Obopay has announced a new Sponsored Accounts feature that the company says "allows anyone under 18 to benefit from the fun, convenience and security of sending and receiving money in real time via the mobile phone. Through this new family enhancement, parents can provide each child with an Obopay account linked to his or her own mobile phone. With Obopay, kids can now enjoy the freedom of spending cash in a cool new way, while parents get the tracking and control they need to ensure fiscal guidance." Obopay has also announced it is now offering a new "Refer-A-Friend" program to incent signups. It rewards Obopay users who refer their friends to signup with Obopay with $5 for each successful referral.

Trying to bust corporate cafeteria lines, Sodexho, a provider of integrated food and facilities management in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, has announced that it will begin accepting MasterCard PayPass contactless cards at its on-site restaurants across the country. Sodexho said it has begun phase one of the implementation that includes 225 locations and will expand PayPass to 1,000 Sodexho-managed corporate sites by the end of 2007.

I4 Commerce, parent of Bill Me Later, has announced that Mark Britto, former Senior Vice President at Amazon.com, Robert DiRomualdo, former Chairman of Borders Group, Inc. and Victor Lund, former Vice Chairman of Albertson's, Inc. have joined its Board of Directors.

ACI Worldwide has announced the launch of an ACI On Demand offering, allowing financial institutions and retailers in North America to use the company’spayments software through a hosted solution arrangement. ACI says it "will configure and host a unique copy of its software to meet the needs of each customer, offering greater control than traditional outsourcing and multi-tenant arrangements while freeing clients from the job of staffing and managing their own systems infrastructure."

Erika Hayasaki writes for the Los Angeles Times about the Sigo card - a prepaid MasterCard debit card designed for immigrants. Sigo cards are Issued by MetaBank and marketed by IDT Stored Value Services. More information about Sigo is available on their website.

Vicki Lee Parker writes for the McClatchy Newspapers about PayJr and other prepaid debit cards targeting teens and even younger children. She asks "is putting plastic into a child’s hand, especially one under 12, really going to teach the child how to manage money?

The PCI Security Standards Council has announced that nominations for election to the PCI
Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) Board of Advisors are now open. According to the Council, "the Board of Advisors will represent the current roster of more than 100 PCI SSC Participating Organizations, and will provide strategic and technical guidance to the PCI Security Standards Council, reflecting the varied perspectives of different global stakeholders."

• First Data Corp. to Acquire Data Analytics Company Intelligent Results
• Forbes: Saving On Credit Card Processing Fees
• New MasterCard® PayPass™ Creative to Debut on ABC Broadcast of 79th Annual Academy Awards® and on Priceless.com
• OTI's Saturn 6000 Receives MasterCard PayPass M/Chip Approval
• nFinanSe Discover Network Gift Cards Launched
• Cyphermint Upgrades Customers to Enhanced Mobile Web Wallet
• Global Payments Announces Agreement to Extend Comerica Alliance through January 2014
• Wachovia Ranks No. 1 In Customer Satisfaction Survey For Sixth Straight Year
• ActivIdentity Receives Recognition for Innovation in Smart Card Technology From U.S. Department of Commerce
• INS Approved to Perform PCI Audits in Europe
• Bankrate.com: Celebrities talk about credit cards
• Experian Now Empowers Collectors With 'Improved Ability to Pay' Consumer Intelligence
• Debit, credit card fraud cases put shoppers on edge