Looks like bullish signal to me.
The media sure took that ball and ran with it.
If nothing else, think of all the people that also just learned that there is a BitInstant, and that you can buy bitcoin with cash because of them.
Here's my take on why the bitcoin-denominated debit card concept is significant:
1.) This allows for a very cheap international remittance network. It gives the ability to transfer purchasing power from people in developed countries (who hold bitcoins) to their relatives back home (who use the cards for purchases or withdrawals at ATMs, in whatever currency).
With a card that can be loaded using bitcoins, you can add funds to anyone else's Paycard.
2.) This becomes an easy to use point-of-sale terminal for a merchant.
A merchant processing company, BitPay.com, offers a very similar service already, but they work with your bank account (e.g., ACH transfer).
This lets the merchant spend the funds wherever Mastercard is accepted and for use when withdrawing cash from an ATM.
Faster access to the cash is important to many merchants. [Use as a point-of-sale terminal assumes that there is some notification to the merchant, such as an SMS text message, each time a payment is received.]
3.) This makes it easier to get by without having a bank account.
I can store my wealth in bitcoins, but spend in dollars when that method is more convenient or less expensive.
Sure, long term it would be nice to not even do any payment card transactions and to pay for everything using bitcoins but we are a long way from that.
This is like a bridge that helps get from here to there.
Even though there have been other methods to load/reload a debit card using bitcoins that have been offered already, the details on this one were sweet. $10 to get the card and a 1.5% cash out fee. That's a much better deal than any existing alternative (e.g., OKPay, ArumXChange's reloadable card, self-managed method where you register any reloadable prepaid card and buy MoneyPak at $5 per load and a conversion fee.)
Here are a couple threads discussing the Paycard:
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https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bitcoin-mastercard-or-any-credit-card-who-cares-102613 -
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/bitinstant-paycard-101838 -
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/2012-8-22-techweekeuropecouk-mastercard-denies-plans-for-bitcoin-credit-card-102494