2013 Merchant Founding Partner Program

The Forum recognizes that merchants are particularly important stakeholders in the migration of EMV payments. We also understand that some merchants are constrained by limited financial and personnel resources from participating in industry associations such as the EMV Migration Forum. To address this reality and attempt to reduce or eliminate these barriers to full participation for qualified merchants, the EMV Migration Forum has created the Merchant Founding Partner program.

Under the Merchant Founding Partner program, the Forum set aside (14) no cost General memberships to qualifying merchants based on a mix of merchant types. These memberships are offered to individual businesses that represent a cross-section of the market so that participating merchants in the EMV Migration Forum provide input from a broad section of the marketplace.

Eligible Organizations

There are a limited number of complimentary memberships remaining under this program; merchants in the following business categories will be selected for this complimentary membership:

  • General Merchandise / Grocery category – 6 memberships
  • Convenience Store / Quick Service Restaurant category – 4 memberships
  • Retail Petroleum category – 2 memberships
  • Other merchant categories (e.g., Transit) – 2 memberships

Qualifying Organizations

To qualify for the Merchants Founding Members program, merchants must:

  • Complete the application form and return it to the EMV Migration Forum.
  • Operate a minumum of five retail locations in the United States, with annual credit card sales over $1 million.
  • Agree to actively participate in the EMV Migration Forum by guaranteeing at least one person attending at minimum of two in-person Forum meetings and joining one or more (virtual) working committees for a minimum of six months during the calendar year.
  • Acknowledge and agree to the bylaws of the EMV Migration Forum
  • Help to increase merchant participation in the Forum through direct communications with other merchants, with a goal of influencing two additional merchant members during the calendar year.

Application

Merchant Founding Partner Membership Application

Selection Notification

Merchants will be notified if they have been selected for the Merchant Founding Partner program period within a 10 business days after receipt of their application. The complimentary membership will expire on December 31, 2013, regardless of when the application is submitted.

Benefits of Program

Merchants who become members of the EMV Migration Forum will be granted access to and participate directly in the cross-industry body that gathers to address issues to ensure that the migration to EMV-enabled cards, devices, and terminals is efficient, timely, and effective across the U.S. market. Forum members will meet in-person for face-to-face educational and working sessions a minimum of four times per year (once per quarter). In addition, members may join one or more working committees that meet weekly or bi-weekly by conference call sessions to work on specific projects, best practices, and EMV migration deliverables.

As the Forum has six membership levels, each with specific benefits for participation in and leadership of Forum activities, the General Member level offered in the Merchant Founding Partners program includes the following member benefits:

  • Eligible for election to the two (2) seats on the Forum Steering Committee that have been reserved for General Members
  • Eligible to serve as an officer of the Steering Committee (if elected) and chairperson for any working committee
  • Entitled to one vote in electing the two (2) Steering Committee seats that are reserved for General Members.
  • Entitled to up to two (2) individuals joining and participating in Forum working committees.
  • Entitled to up to two (2) representatives attending each in-person Forum or working committee meeting at no charge

Merchants who become members of the EMV Migration Forum will be granted access to and participate directly in the cross-industry body that will gather to address issues to ensure that the migration to EMV-enabled cards, devices, and terminals is efficient, timely, and effective across the U.S. market. Forum members will meet in-person for face-to-face educational and working sessions a minimum of four times per year (once per quarter). In addition, members may join one or more working committees that meet weekly or bi-weekly by conference call sessions to work on specific projects, best practices, and EMV migration deliverables.

Additional Benefits

As members of the EMV Migration Forum, merchants will share in the following Forum member benefits:

  • Access – Collaborating with payments industry leaders to discuss and determine best practices for EMV implementation in the U.S.
  • Advance knowledge – Gaining market advantage by getting information and acting on it before many “outsiders” know it is happening
  • Business and industry outreach – Carrying your message promoting the value of EMV to the U.S. payments industry
  • Influence – Working with your industry peers to contribute to the U.S. payments industry policies and best practices for the design, implementation, and use of EMV-enabled cards, devices and terminals
  • Information, research and learning – Gaining priority access to new policies, technology advances, and legislative changes through Forum activities, projects and meetings
  • Innovation – Working with peers to explore EMV migration opportunities and challenges and to help prepare the U.S. payments infrastructure for secure EMV transactions.
  • Lower research or implementation costs – Sharing work with peers from other organizations to reduce the time and cost needed to think through and plan complex EMV implementation details, develop best practices and resolve industry issues.
  • Networking – Establishing valuable contacts to help your organization establish your strategy for supporting the move to EMV
  • Public opinion influence – Providing a unified, credible industry voice for EMV in the U.S. that no single member can achieve alone with policy makers, media, analysts and other influencers
  • Visibility – Putting your organization at the forefront of leaders in the payments industry through active participation in Forum activities, projects and meetings and through the organization’s outreach efforts promoting EMV
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