Merchants to Offer Greater Speed, Convenience to Visa Contactless Cardholders

SAN FRANCISCO, March 19, 2007–Visa USA today announced that four significant national and regional merchants are the latest to accept Visa cards with embedded contactless payment technology, allowing consumers to use the convenience of this innovative technology to buy food, groceries and movie tickets at more than 3,000 new acceptance locations.

The four companies – Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Stores; Clearview Cinemas; Wakefern Food Corporation, the merchandising and distribution arm of ShopRite supermarkets; and Taco Bell Corp. – are emblematic of the kind of merchants who have helped to make Visa Contactless cards the most rapidly adopted new payment technology in Visa’s history.

Visa Contactless technology enables customers to make purchases by simply holding their Visa Contactless cards near a secure reader at checkout instead of swiping them. The account information is securely transmitted by a tiny radio frequency chip embedded in the card.

Visa Contactless eliminates the signature requirement for most payments under $25, providing even greater convenience to customers making small ticket purchases. In addition, Visa Contactless maintains the level of security the industry has come to expect from Visa. A Visa card with the contactless feature never leaves the customer’s hand and can only be read at extremely close proximity to a contactless reader. In addition, the chip embedded in Visa Contactless cards generates data that is unique to each transaction, ensuring the same data cannot be used for fraudulent contactless transaction.

“When faced with the choice between paper or plastic, consumers are increasingly turning to plastic for everyday purchases at grocery stores, fast food restaurants and convenience stores, and Visa cardholders consistently voice their preference for merchants that offer fast and convenient transactions,” said Brian Triplett, senior vice president, Emerging Product Development, Visa USA. “By collaborating with merchants like these, we are able meet the demands of consumers and provide them with an enhanced purchasing experience.”

• Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Stores, a popular, family-owned restaurant chain, now accepts Visa Contactless at its 276 stores in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. Customers can now enjoy ice cream fountain treats or get their groceries even faster–less time to pay and more time to enjoy.
• Clearview Cinemas has installed Visa Contactless readers in all of its 52 theater locations, enabling moviegoers to move through the box office lines quicker, as well as providing them with an easier method to complete their ticket purchase. Clearview shows films on 258 screens in the New York metropolitan area.
• ShopRite, a leading grocery retailer in the Northeast, has started accepting Visa Contactless payments at more than 4,000 POS locations in more than 200 ShopRite stores across New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Delaware. Customers can now spend less time in line for their weekly shopping.
• Taco Bell Corp., the nation’s leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain, will test Visa Contactless cards initially at 100 restaurants in the fourth quarter of 2007. The brand plans to turn all 1,300 company restaurants and additional participating franchise locations nationwide into Contactless acceptance locations throughout 2008, pending a successful test.

“Visa’s announcement shows that the card industry is generating momentum with contactless payments,” said Gwenn Bezard, research director, Aite Group. “Adoption is growing as all stakeholders see the benefits–higher transactions per card for issuers, convenience and security for consumers, and speed and sales lift for merchants.”

About Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Stores

Currently there are 276 Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Stores throughout Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Missouri, and Arkansas. Bill and Mary Braum opened their first Braum’s store in 1968, and the company continues to be family-owned and operated. Visit us online at http://www.braums.com.

About Clearview Cinemas

A subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation since 1998, Clearview Cinemas was formed in 1994 and currently operates 52 movie theatres with 258 screens in the New York Metropolitan area, including the famous Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. New Jersey locations include theaters in Millburn and Montclair. Clearview also operates theatres in Westchester, Rockland County, Long Island and Pennsylvania. More information on Clearview can be found at http://www.clearviewcinemas.com.

About ShopRite

ShopRite supermarkets are members of Wakefern Food Corporation, a retailer-owned cooperative with stores located throughout New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Delaware. ShopRite serves more than 4 million customers each week. A long time supporter of key community efforts, ShopRite was named the New Jersey Corporate Philanthropist of the Year, by the Community Foundation of New Jersey. America’s Second Harvest Food Bank Network recognized ShopRite as the Grocery Distributor of the year for its ShopRite Partners In Caring program, a year-round initiative dedicated to fighting hunger in the communities served by ShopRite. Since its inception, ShopRite Partners In Caring has donated more than $11 million to over 1,000 worthy charities.

About Taco Bell

Taco Bell Corp., a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., (NYSE: YUM), is the nation’s leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain serving tacos, burritos, signature Quesadillas, Grilled Stuft Burritos, nachos and other specialty items. Taco Bell serves more than 35 million consumers each week in nearly 5,800 restaurants in the U.S.

About Visa

Visa USA is a leading payment brand and the nation’s largest payment system, enabling banks to provide their consumers and business customers with a wide variety of payment alternatives tailored to meet their evolving needs. Visa USA is committed to increasing the choice, convenience, acceptance and security of Visa payments for all stakeholders in the payment system–members, cardholders and merchants. Through its 13,382 member financial institutions, more than 513 million Visa-branded cards have been issued to cardholders in the United States. Last year, U.S.-based financial institutions relied on Visa’s processing system, VisaNet, to facilitate $1.3 trillion in transactions with unparalleled reliability. Visa offers a trusted, reliable and convenient way to access and mobilize financial resources–anytime, anywhere, anyway.

Press Conact

Elvira Swanson
Visa USA
650-432.8352
elswanso@visa.com