Originally Posted by
RTW1
Wow, you keep bringing up the same lines... Even if they are simply proven wrong time and time again by other posters.
Take it from me, as one that works in the industry, card readers that can still read the magnetic strip are still plentifull and will be for quite a while. Even the new ones still have the ability to read mag strips.
And I mentioned in a prev thread that friends reported no issues with using their swipe card in Holland, where they just returned from last month.
There are 2 reasons that swipe cards will continue to be accepted throughout Europe.
1/ Most merchant agreements with Visa/MC require acceptance of ALL Visa cards, and
2/ American tourists account for a substantial part of Western Europe's tourist economy. Perhaps as high as 30-40%. Would you ever think that the tourist industry in these countries is prepared to take such a financial hit over a machine? Americans want to use their credit cards when they travel (no cash) and 98% of those cards are mag strip swipe cards.