A collective boycott by pubs of DC Payments, Australia's dominant, independent supplier of automatic teller machines, may be on the horizon.Now owned by US ATM giant Cardtronics, DC Payments late last year took over Cashcard from First Data, a step that gave it more than 11,000 ATMs and control of around one third of the national ATM fleet.The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission in November initiated a review of the DC acquisition of the "already completed" acquisition of Cashcard, but it is yet to outline any views.The Australian Hotels Association approached the ACCC at the end of last month for authorisation for a "possible" boycott of DC Payments, proposed to last for as long as five years. Many hotels use Cashcard or DC as supplier of ATMs. The AHA represents around 5000 businesses.A letter to the ACCC from their legal adviser, Hank Spier - himself a former ACCC commissioner - explained that the takeover "took Cashcard merchants by surprise" and that "had they known more might have given notice to terminate agreements."The AHA "ideally" aspires to advise merchants "not to enter into new DC Payments contracts," Spier wrote.He also complained that hotel Cashcard merchants "are rolled over" into DC contracts "with no other option."The AHA, in its application, said its hotel members "have had considerable angst in dealing with DC Payments, now made worse with the acquisition of Cashcard."The association added that "there are lengthy periods of delays … supplying services" from Cardtronics/DC, described as a "large monopoly or oligopoly supplier" that exercised "substantial power, able to dictate unfavourable terms and conditions."Matthew Thomas, managing director of DC Payments, wrote in an email: "We are in continuing discussions with the AHA and have no further comments on this to make at this point."