Evan Schuman's StorefrontBacktalk

Visa had heralded Best Buy’s initial acceptance of the contactless card and this is the latest threat to the wireless technology. Even some new converts to contactless—such as Home Depot and Subway and Sports Authority—are decidedly unenthusiastic about the deployment, often making the move only after a partner (typically a card brand) covers all costs and sometimes writes a check for more than all costs.

Contactless initially suffered from credible reports questioning its security, but industry changes to the contactless cards—most significantly the removal of some customer-identifying data that was being broadcast to anyone listening—made that less of an issue.

And contactless cards had initially—and, to a major extent, still have—accuracy issues, with frequent reports of double- and triple charges appearing on consumer bills.

But even setting those negatives aside, contactless has suffered most not from a series of negatives nearly as much as the absence of positives. In short, the reasons for consumers to use the cards have always been weak.

The cards were positioned as more convenient than magstripe, a claim that didn’t work well as the time needed to wave the card was not materially less than the time needed to swipe it. The RFID approach is much more efficient in an application such as EZpass—where cars barely need to slow down driving through toll booths—than in retail checkout.

The Best Buy move is critical, if for no other reason than it’s symbolism. (And, yes, Best Buy has been using contactless readers from Motorola’s Symbol group, but the symbolism reference was not an attempt at a bad play-on-words.)

Given the large number of retail sites that are not fond of the Visa signature restriction, this Best Buy move could give them political cover for also pulling out—or at least threatening to do so. And the fact that a major chain has actually pulled out might make Visa more willing to believe that others would do the same if major concessions aren’t offered.