4.1.1 Introduction

The Internet is capable of becoming one of the most powerful business and financial tools of our time-if the process becomes simple and complete enough. Some businesses launched on the Net sell goods and services, but the buyer must send a check via regular mail to complete transactions. Although this is a viable method for some applications, a richer suite of payment mechanisms is needed for the broader range of business that will be conducted on the Internet.

Like the traditional off-line market, buyers and sellers want a variety of options such as credit cards, debit cards, and cash-or in this case, digital cash. To meet this demand, a host of new companies are vying to establish their technologies as the means for conducting secure Internet commerce.

Online commerce has existed in the form of EDI (electronic document interchange) since the mid-1980s. EDI applications are transaction-oriented, ranging from government RFPs (Requests for Proposals) to purchase orders. EDI is in use throughout several major industries to automate and simplify the otherwise paper-intensive process of doing business. While performed today via secure Value-Added Networks, it is questionable to what extent EDI applications will translate to the Internet, especially since many of the transactions involve large sums of money. A convergence is on the horizon nevertheless.