By Jennifer Zaino

Apr. 1, 2010—Five years ago, RFID-enabled credit cards, issued by American Express, MasterCard and Visa, promised to transform consumers' spending habits and open new opportunities for retailers. To make a purchase, shoppers would just need to wave an RFID credit card by an in-store RFID interrogator. These contactless payments—especially for high-volume, typically cash purchases such as fast food, movie tickets and gasoline—would streamline the checkout process, improving customer satisfaction, and increase sales by enabling businesses to serve more people during peak periods.

But consumers and retailers, particularly in the United States, haven't embraced contactless payments for retail purchases (contactless payments for transit systems are popular in Asia and Europe). One reason: The financial institutions that issue RFID credit cards haven't promoted them sufficiently. Another: Many retailers that adopted contactless payment systems haven't offered consumers incentives to use RFID cards or trained their clerks to manage contactless transactions.

Photo: iStockphoto

vAs a result, most retailers that invested in contactless equipment haven't seen a return on their investment. And retailers that need to replace aging point-of-sale (POS) systems, for Payment Card Industry (PCI) security compliance or other reasons, want to know what to expect in terms of ROI before they take the plunge.