opinion

Revelations - Xbiz Summer Forum & Billing

As the Xbiz Summer Forum wrapped up last week I enjoyed the opportunity to moderate the panel focused on Visa regulations, good business practices, and the card associations’ rules, past, present and future. My panelists included card processing authorities Cathy Beardsley of Segpay/CommerceGate/DHD, Mitch Farber of Netbilling, Steve Bryson of OrbitalPay, Dennis DelaRosa of OnlineIPS.net, and Doug Wickes of CCBill.

Our discussions centered on recent new VISA rule enforcement emphasis, guidance on compliance issues, and understanding the regulations faced by merchants every day. Among others, attendee Daniel Hogue, camworld.com CEO, contributed some incisive questions eliciting detailed answers to specific compliance requirements across programs and sites. The depths of the combined panelists’ knowledge was certainly tested here. This Xbiz offering was not your typical vanilla tradeshow billing seminar.

Topics covered included internal and external cross sale limits and exclusions, affects on merchant account holders versus those using third party processors, differences between Visa and MasterCard on all topics, content guidelines and monitoring, history and significance of the Visa regions, descriptors, scrubbing, intentional and unintentional questionable billing practices, common merchant mistakes, and suspicious activity and freezing of funds. The bottom line was a mostly positive future outlook from a particularly well informed group delivering the real goods without hedging.

A post-Visa adult world was also discussed and the panelists unanimously agreed that VISA will not leave the space, but compliance enforcement, fraud prevention and vigorous monitoring of merchant relationships and activities would all continue to intensify to the benefit of cardholders.

I especially enjoyed the moderation, as Webbilling does not provide merchant accounts or process credit cards and therefore is not affected by card association rules; Webbilling provides a non-card payment platform for Europe to pair with and augment credit card processing for extra revenue from the same traffic. With knowledge of processing but no dog in the show, my questions generated a spirited hour of discussion and great attendee participation. For information and introductions to panelists and information on the Webbilling EU non-card payment solutions, write Marketing@Webbilling.com NOW, and watch for more straightforward relevant panels at future Xbiz events.

Copyright © 2026 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More Articles

opinion

Tips for Testing Content to Maximize Conversions

Everyone’s looking for what’s next, hot and new. That’s understandable. Who doesn’t want to be on the cutting edge, riding the next wave? But before you rush to reinvent yourself, remember this: The most successful creators aren’t the ones chasing trends. They’re the ones who take the time to figure out what actually works before committing to big changes.

Megan Stokes ·
profile

Eversense Founder Matty Hennessy Discusses Engineering Products for Trans Bodies

For transgender folks shopping for pleasure products, it can be a daunting challenge to find items that accommodate their changing bodies, address their specific needs and support gender affirmation during intimacy.

Celine Shore ·
opinion

How Adult Businesses Can Navigate Global Compliance Demands

The internet has made the world feel small. Case in point: Adult websites based in the U.S. are now getting letters from regulators demanding compliance with foreign laws, even if they don’t operate in those countries. Meanwhile, some U.S. website operators dealing with the patchwork of state-level age verification laws have considered incorporating offshore in the hopes of avoiding these new obligations — but even operators with no physical presence in the U.S. have been sued or threatened with claims for not following state AV laws.

Larry Walters ·
opinion

Top Tips for Bulletproof Creator Management Contracts

The creator management business is booming. Every week, it seems, a new agency emerges, promising to turn creators into stars, automate their fan interactions or triple their revenue through “secret” social strategies. The reality? Many of these agencies are operating with contracts that wouldn’t survive a single serious dispute — if they even have contracts at all.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
profile

LSMT's Allison Brazier on Creating a More Connected Shopping Experience

Managing adult retail stores in Florida and Texas has never been for the faint of heart, but lately it’s become a veritable high-wire act. Between new legislation and shifting local attitudes, it seems like every day brings a new obstacle.

Quinton Bellamie ·
opinion

Building Sustainable Revenue Without Opt-Out Cross-Sales

Over the past year, we’ve seen growing pushback from acquirers on merchants using opt-out cross-sales — also known as negative option offers. This has been especially noticeable in the U.S. In fact, one of our acquirers now declines new merchants during onboarding if an opt-out flow is detected. Existing merchants submitting new URLs with opt-out cross-sales are being asked to remove them.

Cathy Beardsley ·
trends

How to Handle Payment Disputes Without Sacrificing Trust

You can run the best-managed and most compliant website out there, but that still doesn’t completely shield you from the risks tied to payment disputes. Buyer’s remorse, an unclear billing description or even a simple misunderstanding can lead a customer to dispute a transaction. Accumulate enough disputes, and both your reputation and revenue could be at risk.

Jonathan Corona ·
opinion

Tips for Supporting Male Shoppers Managing Stress and Performance Issues

When focusing on men’s sexual health, one crucial topic to discuss is how stress can impact men’s sexual well-being, and what can be done about it.

Staci Cruse ·
profile

Sienna Day Talks Creator Life, Longevity and Loving the Work

When Sienna Day heard her name called onstage at the Euro XMAs in Amsterdam, the newly crowned 2025 MILF Creator of the Year froze — then floated.

Jackie Backman ·
opinion

Tips for Upgrading Retail Merchandising With AI

When an order from CalExotics arrived at one of our stores in Livermore, I wanted to help build the wall. After reorganizing it, I took a picture and asked ChatGPT what it thought of the wall. First, it noticed a gap in the top row and recommended adding a toy there or changing the spacing. Then it said, “I noticed there are some toys on the right that aren’t in boxes. You should take those down or put them in boxes.”

Zondre Watson ·
Show More