Let's count the problems here.
1. "Samsung’s decision has put credit card companies in a soup..." People getting something for nothing are shocked when the free ride is over. Color me surprised.
2. "These companies say they heavily marketed Samsung Pay over the past eight years to over 16 million users, thinking it would remain free." Unlikely. Those companies had to know the free ride could end at any time and only marketed it to gain/maintain market share. This is either speculation by the author, or gross incompetence from the companies.
3. "To cut their costs, they may reduce the benefits they used to offer to their end users." You mean the benefits that have already been degrading over the years anyway?
4. "While the government has said that contracts between the companies are autonomous, it may intervene if the charges are passed on to consumers." Impossible. The end consumer always pays the cost. If not from a price hike, then in other ways like the cut benefits from #3. Or they could cut back on wages, which has its own downsides.
Personally I don't use any of those services. I stick to plastic, so this isn't really affecting me much. If people want to make use of something like Samsung Pay, then they should pay for it. Whether it's built into the purchase price of the device (not ideal), a subscription, transaction fee, or whatever, a service needs to be funded somehow.