Judge rules against AmEx anti-steering

A federal judge last month ruled against American Express Co.’s anti-steering rules, which prevented merchants from offering discounts to consumers who used certain brands of credit cards.
The judge ruled in favor of the U.S. Department of Justice and 17 states, including Rhode Island, saying the anti-steering rules violated federal antitrust laws, according to a Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin. The anti-steering rules prohibited merchants from telling consumers that certain credit card brands charged vendors more than others, a charge that ultimately got passed on to the consumer, according to Kilmartin.
The Rhode Island attorney general lauded the decision.
“American Express required merchants pay additional fees for the right to offer the credit card as a payment option, which were then passed on to the consumer,” Kilmartin said in a statement. “This decision is a victory for businesses that now have the ability to better negotiate with all credit card agencies and consumers will benefit as competitors among credit card companies should result in lower prices.”
Visa and MasterCard settled similar antitrust charges in 2010, according to Kilmartin.
Other states involved in the case include Arizona, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Vermont.