Article: Going Paperless: Virtual Statements Help Issuers Cut Billing Costs; Credit card companies battling rising postage and printing costs eye ways to wean customers away from receiving monthly statements by mail.(Cards: Marketing)

Byline: Kate Fitzgerald

Credit card issuers grappling with rising printing and postage costs are reviewing their statementing policies. Although the institutions are treading carefully to avoid customer backlash, some likely will discontinue sending paper statements within the next year or two, analysts say.

The credit card industry mails more monthly statements than any other industry, last year mailing 3.6 billion monthly statements to consumers, according to the U.S. Postal Service. Credit card statements accounted for 57% of the types of bills sent by mail last year, more than those for cable/satellite TV or cell phone subscriptions.

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