Tales from the Birth of Internet Commerce

From the first public use of the World Wide Web in 1993, online commerce has been at the top of the minds of consumers, businesses, and software developers. The potential of this new Internet communications platform was apparent from the very beginning. Individuals and businesses immediately wanted to engage in commerce in the new online medium. Uncertainty about online payments existed on all sides. Technology entrepreneurs dreamed of superseding the entrenched payment systems, controlled by established financial institutions, with new and more perfect payment methods, safe and convenient for all-and lucrative for those entrepreneurs. The last 20 years have seen rapid progress from early uncertainty to universal availability of online payments, primarily through the creditcard processing networks established by large U.S. banks.