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Nearly 20 million Americans ages 12 and older have purchased something online for less than $2 in the past year, according to a new survey commissioned by Peppercoin, a micropayments technology company, and conducted by market research firm Ipsos Insight. The survey estimated 45 million Americans are willing to use credit or debit cards for purchases of $5 or less, up 23 percent from September 2004. Among the purchases for which consumers showed willingness to use credit cards were beverages, parking payments, fast-food or corporate cafeteria items and vending machines or kiosks.

While a survey commissioned by a company that stands to profit from increased micropayment offerings should be looked at with a careful eye, there is no doubt that the use of credit cards for small-scale purchases has increased and is being accepted by consumers. Last month Visa announced an aggressive strategy to get more merchants to accept small payments, vowing to make the process faster and easier for cardholders and incenting merchants with lower debit interchange rates.

 

Published 12/06/05 (Modified 11/26/12)