Interesting Innovation . . .

New Frederick County PL Library Card Doubles as a Visa Debit Card

http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2014/09/public-services/new-frederick-county-pl-library-card-doubles-visa-debit-card/

“Following four months of discussions with SirsiDynix and a brief pilot test this summer, Maryland’s Frederick County Public Libraries (FCPL) on September 5 officially launched the “I Love My Library” prepaid Visa debit card. Developed by SirsiDynix in partnership with Visa and Card Limited, the new affinity cards double as a patron’s library card and aim to help libraries achieve three goals:

1. Offer “unbanked” patrons access to a debit card with a transparent fee structure as a component of a library’s financial literacy programming.
2. Develop deeper ties with local businesses through a Linkable Networks feature that will enable local and national merchants and restaurant owners to partner with libraries and offer discounts to card holders.
3. Provide a new revenue stream to libraries, which will receive a small donation from Card Limited each time a card is activated—one dollar in FCPL’s case—as well as seven percent of each card’s monthly fee, a portion of transaction fees, and typically one percent to two percent of each affinity card transaction from merchants that partner with the library through the Linkable Networks feature. These fees cannot be waived by the library if a patron opts to register the card with Visa. However, if a patron chooses not to register the card, it will still work at the library.

Some librarians may find the concept of offering a prepaid card as a revenue stream unusual or possibly in opposition to the non-profit tradition of public libraries, acknowledged Eric Keith, VP of global marketing, communications, and strategic alliances for SirsiDynix. However, there is a real need for these services among many demographics that are heavy library users. Libraries, unlike convenience stores or other retail outlets that sell prepaid debit cards, have the opportunity to tie these cards into financial literacy programs, Keith noted.”

Stephen