Borders Giftcards Good at Kobo

[issybird]

I just discovered this this evening. Perhaps I'm late to the party and everyone knows it, in which case carry on, with my apologies. For those who don't know it, if you start to go through the Kobo checkout process and choose the giftcard option, you can select Borders Gift Card.

I see two attractive wrinkles to this. The first is that purchasing Borders Giftcards will let US customers avoid the transactions fees charged by Kobo. The second (which I haven't tried yet) is the possibility of purchasing Borders Giftcards through Ebates or Mr. Rebates and thus getting a tiny kickback on Kobo purchases.

[taming]

The transaction fee is charged by (some) US credit cards for international purchases. The rate is from 1-3% with cards from Capitol One and some others having no charge at all. This has been discussed elsewhere on the boards. Kobo is currently going through the process needed to be able to seen as a US purchase so this will come to an end. It should happen soon. That being said, the ability to use Borders gift cards is terrific!

[issybird]

LOL, I wondered if I should expand charged by Kobo to include the explanation about banks, credit cards, etc. but figured it had been so thoroughly discussed that everyone would take it as read. Ah, well.

I wouldn't want to make a huge investment in Borders cards on the promise of being able to use them at Kobo because that can and probably will change. In the meantime, though, those pesky fees are still being charged and "soon" is nebulous.

[library addict]

Originally Posted by issybird

and "soon" is nebulous.

Yes, they said it would end "soon" a year ago.

Thanks for the info on the gift cards.

[taming]

JCKobo, who has now moved to the part of Kobo that is doing the merger part of the bookstores said within two weeks. I don't know that I would count on two weeks, but it seems likely to be sooner than before .

[koland]

Originally Posted by issybird

LOL, I wondered if I should expand charged by Kobo to include the explanation about banks, credit cards, etc. but figured it had been so thoroughly discussed that everyone would take it as read. Ah, well.

I wouldn't want to make a huge investment in Borders cards on the promise of being able to use them at Kobo because that can and probably will change. In the meantime, though, those pesky fees are still being charged and "soon" is nebulous.

The fee isn't charged by Kobo. Just use a different credit card -- your bank/CC company is the one charging you those fees.

I've never paid a transaction fee for Kobo purchases (nor any exchange rate fee, since the charge is in USD, even though it is a Canadian company).

However, since it is a Canadian company, I have had some cards refuse to allow them to be used for payment, until I called the company and authorized the card for non-US/International payments.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by koland

The fee isn't charged by Kobo. Just use a different credit card -- your bank/CC company is the one charging you those fees.

I've never paid a transaction fee for Kobo purchases (nor any exchange rate fee, since the charge is in USD, even though it is a Canadian company).

Oy. We've addressed who's charging those fees. I know it's the bank (and, just for the record, the credit card I use at Kobo doesn't charge me a fee, either, but I know it's an issue for others, hence my post).

Lemme play devil's advocate for a minute, though, to defend my terminology. The fee shows up on your credit card statement as part of the Kobo charge and is part of the cost of doing business with Kobo, Kobo should have been fully aware when they started selling their device at Borders that at least some US customers would be charged a transaction fee by their credit card companies, and Kobo has had tons of time to address the issue with a US portal, instead of promising to fix it "soon." So actually I'm sticking with what I said.

[taming]

Really, I don't think it is Kobo's responsibility to tell you how your bank may have decided to make extra bucks off international sales. I am betting it is in the fine print that goes along with the offending credit cards.

US taxes show up too, even though some US companies don't charge taxes for on-line purchases. I don't know if that is a result of US regulations for International sales, or Canada's.

I'm an American with dual citizenship who has only lived in Canada for the past ten years. I remember being somewhat surprised to find out that other countries don't design their systems around what is necessarily most convenient or the least expensive for people in other locations. It happened when I ordered things from US companies, whilst living here

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by taming

Really, I don't think it is Kobo's responsibility to tell you how your bank may have decided to make extra bucks off international sales. I am betting it is in the fine print that goes along with the offending credit cards.

Never even realized Kobo was based in Canada. Thankfully, I wasn't charged any exchange rate fees since the charge was in US dollars. From the fee schedule, my credit card issuers don't charge a transaction fee for international transactions. The only charge is a 2~3% (depending on the issuer) foreign exchange rate fee in case the charge is in a different currency.