By Justin McHenry

American Express announced changes to its Membership Rewards credit card rewards program last week, splitting the program into three different segments based on the type of card being carried. In short, under the new program, the more you pay for your American Express card, the greater the rewards you are eligible for. The three levels and their corresponding rewards are as follows:

• Membership Rewards Express is the rewards program offered to those who carry American Express’ no-annual-fee, revolving credit cards, such as Blue from American Express. Similar to the previously named Membership Rewards Options program, it offers points that are redeemed for merchandise, gift cards, travel rewards, etc. Among the new features is a Hotel Card that can be used for all or part of the expenses related to hotel stays, and the Pay with Points option that allows cardholders to pay for all or part of their travel expenses with points, when travel is booked through American Express.
• Membership Rewards is the name for the program offered to holders of traditional American Express green or gold charge cards. It offers everything found in the Rewards Express program, but also allows points to be transferred to over 20 frequent flyer or frequent guest programs from major airlines and hotel chains.
• Membership Rewards First is the program for those who’ve accepted American Express’ invitation to hold the American Express Platinum Card or the American Express Centurion Card. This program offers everything the first two offer, but ups the ante by offering points that can be redeemed with luxury partners such as Lamborghini, Tiffany & Co., The Ritz Carlton and Premier Cru vintage wines. Cardholders can also earn triple points when they make purchases via American Express’ BonusPointsMall.com (the lower tier programs only offer double points for these purchases).

American Express has also added a new twist to all of its programs that should interest those who crave rewards. It’s the introduction of Points Advance, a program that allows you to be “advanced” points in order to get rewards for which you may not yet have enough points–Express Rewards members can be advanced up to 5,000 points, Rewards members can get up to 15,000 points advanced, and Rewards First members can get up to 60,000 points advanced.

American Express also introduced a new rewards category for casual dining restaurants, adding The Cheesecake Factory, California Pizza Kitchen, P.F. Chang’s, Red Lobster and Olive Garden to its long list of reward partners.

By Seth Harbison

Burger King is running a promotion through August 31 which will reward customers who pay with a Visa credit card or check card by giving a free meal (via a statement credit of a maximum of $7.00) after every 10 Burger King purchases with a Visa. Given the relatively short time frame of the promotion, Burger King regulars will have to get their cards out quick if they’d like a freebie.

To take advantage of the promotion, they’ll also need to register their cards first, at  www.visa.com/bkdeal.

Credit card companies have been making a consistent push in the last year or so to get consumers to make small purchases with a credit card. This deal between Visa and Burger King can be seen as a tactic to get BK regulars into the habit of pulling out their cards instead of their cash.

By Justin McHenry

Chase last week announced further initiatives in its “Clear & Simple Plan” to give cardholders more control and potentially limit card fees. Among the initiatives is the ability for cardholders to choose their card’s due date and to restrict their own ability to charge past their card’s credit limit (thus avoiding over-the-limit fees).  In addition, Chase is offering $10 to cardholders who pay their bills electronically and sign up for free alerts on potential card fees.

Among the other initiatives is a “rate reset” which allows cardholders who’ve had their rates bumped up due to late payments to get back their old rate after a year of on-time payments.

Chase has also set up a Clear & Simple Web site at http://www.chaseclearandsimple.com with tips on using credit and other financial advice.

Earlier this year Chase ended its practice of two-cycle billing (charging interest on the average credit card balance over a two-month period) and announced the development of other customer-friendly policies to come.  The Clear & Simple initiatives are part of that effort.

The major credit card companies have come under closer scrutiny this year as Congress as repeatedly hauled company executives to hearings to discuss fees and business practices that some see as unfair.

By Justin McHenry

Bank of America today launched the Accolades American Express Card, its first credit card exclusively targeting wealthy clients in its Premier Banking & Investments, The Private Bank of Bank of America and Family Wealth Advisors groups. These affluent customers each have at least $100,000 in deposits and investments with Bank of America, and the Accolades card is intended to reward them for fat spending.

Bank of America is offering both the expected and unexpected in its reward program: access to “experiences” such as cooking with top chefs, exclusive access to major events, travel offers and upgrades, including complimentary airline companion tickets, and access to a full-service concierge to do the heavy lifting for clients who wish to attend events, get restaurant reservations or just want someone else to think of a good birthday gift.

Another interesting perk is the ability to use rewards points for charitable contributions that are matched by Bank of America.

While the Accolades American Express Card carries a $295 annual fee, this is waived as long as cardholders remain eligible Bank of America customers via the previously mentioned deposit and investment groups.

By Justin McHenry

Regional wireless provider Cellular South announced today the testing of its “Wireless Wallet,” which will give cell phone customers the ability to pay for items just by passing their cell phones in front of an electronic reader. The test, using a prototype Kyocera phone not available to the general public, is taking place with the help of more than a dozen partner retailers comprising 50 individual locations in Memphis, Tennessee and Jackson, Mississippi. About 75 Cellular South customers are participating in the trial.

The “Wireless Wallet” uses near-field communications (NFC) technology to send information from the phones to special readers installed at merchant locations.

Cellular South calls this “the first mobile wallet trial in the country to engage multiple retailers within a community.”

The WirelessWallet trial will run through August 2007, and the cell phone payment service is expected to be operational on a wider basis in early 2008.