Guidance Regarding MerchantLink-Shift4 Migration Requirement
The following information will be shared with hotels via the Nov. 10 Weekly Update.
Franchise Management Companies of Legacy Marriott Rewards Hotels | We have been advised that due to the acquisition of MerchantLink by Shift4, some legacy MerchantLink platforms will be shut down in the coming months. As a result, some hotels have been contacted by Shift4 to require the following actions:
- Migration from one payment gateway platform to another
- Switching of credit card processor/ acquirer to Shift4’s processor of choice
Marriott International is in discussions with Shift4 as this strategy conflicts with Marriott’s payment strategy.
As part of the Chip and PIN solution intended to reduce fraud chargebacks and provide a global gateway solution to bring added capability in the future, Marriott has selected FreedomPay as our global gateway provider. FreedomPay will be replacing Elavon and MerchantLink gateways and Chase will remain Marriott’s credit card processor. The FreedomPay gateway solution will be established as a brand standard in Q1 2020.
Additional details and any necessary actions to be taken will be shared in the coming weeks. Until then, please ensure hotels do not complete any migration activities requested by Shift4 or MerchantLink, and please refrain from executing any legal documents that may be binding. Note: If you or your hotels have not received any communication directly from Shift4, then you likely are not impacted.
