The contention surrounding cash advances from payday lenders begins to pale when compared to the money-making tactics of credit card companies. In an effort to prevent cash-strapped borrowers from falling into credit card traps, President Obama is transforming the way that industry works.

A new law scheduled to go into effect next February will prevent credit card lenders from imposing astronomical interest rates when payments are made a day or two late. Additionally, credit card companies won’t be able to change interest rates at the drop of a hat. Instead, they’ll be required to give 45 days’ notice, and except in the case of defaults, altered credit card terms will apply only to new charges.

But lenders can dream up new fees

That doesn’t mean consumers should ignore the fine print or start paying for everything with plastic. In fact, the credit-card lending situation could get decidedly less favorable for cardholders who pay off their balances every month. According to Dennis Moroney, senior analyst for TowerGroup, a financial-industry research firm, credit card issuers are likely to invent new fees to make up for revenues lost under the new interest rate legislation.

Or reinstate old fees

“The pendulum may have swung in the wrong direction,” Moroney said in a recent SmartMoney interview. Among other things, Moroney expects a return of annual fees, which were common in the 1980s but have been almost unheard of in recent years. He also predicts that no-interest teaser rates will quickly become a thing of the past. “At best,” he says, consumers with excellent credit may receive introductory rates in the six-percent range.” If you currently carry a balance on a low-interest rate card, he advises, “be on your best behavior” to hang onto that rate.

Or cut rewards programs

Rewards programs are another area where credit card issuers are expected to make cuts. That’s bad news for cardholders inclined to run up debt in order to get freebies. On the other hand, the new interest rate legislation could have the opposite effect. Credit card companies will still need rewards programs to stand out from the competition. In fact, Ron Lieber in The New York Times predicts that card issuers may offer big spenders even more rewards to keep them spending.

Not new: The bottom line will always be money

One thing seems certain. Under the new legislation, credit card companies will be competing even more fiercely for the loyalties of their cardholders. So whether you carry high balances or pay your debt off every month, keep in mind that you don’t have to bend to your card issuer’s every whim. If you don’t like changes imposed by a lender, you can always threaten to take your business elsewhere. It’s all about the bottom line, and it may cost a card issuer less to appease you than it would to replace you.