Steve Adams writes for the Patriot Ledger about local merchant concerns about payment card acceptance fees. Adams quotes Jeff Lenard, spokesman for the Washington-based National Association of Convenience Stores, who says "If somebody puts a pack of gum on the counter and pays with a credit card, you’re better off if the person just stole it."

Robin Sidel writes for the Wall St. Journal about payment card data security - pointing out that "smaller shops have proven ill-prepared for the complexities of safeguarding credit-card information." Some small merchants say they're not aware of potential vulnerabilities - or the need to protect data. Sidel notes that Minnesota passed the Plastic Card Security Act earlier this year which took effect in August. California's AB779 has been passed by both houses of the state legislature and is awaiting signature by the governor.

Moneta has announced that it has acquired the Retail Payments (RPS) product formerly owned by CheckFree. "The RPS technology allows consumers to purchase goods and services by transferring money directly from their checking accounts to participating merchants. This simplified process eliminates a large portion of the fees merchants assume with traditional purchases made on credit cards and through other online payment providers. RPS has been a successful CheckFree service offering for more than two years."

TJX announced late yesterday that it "has entered into a Settlement Agreement with respect to the customer class actions in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico relating to customer claims arising from the criminal intrusion(s) into TJX's computer system."

Update: Evan Schuman looks at the details of the TJX settlement.