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Payment System
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overview
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1994-11-19
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PAYMENT SYSTEM OVERVIEW
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Open Market's payment system is built on existing Internet and World
Wide Web protocols. The system works with existing clients, such as
Mosaic, and will be evolved to incorporate new technologies as they
become available. The system uses a novel architecture that separates
the payment function from content delivery and fulfillment.
The system works by encoding payment transaction state in URLs. When a
user makes a purchase, they select a payment URL which encodes the
details of what's for sale (price, etc.). The URL directs the user's
browser to the payment server, which authenticates the user and
processes the payment transaction. The payment server then directs the
user's browser to the purchased item with an access URL, which encodes
the details of the payment transaction (the amount, what was
purchased, etc.).
The system supports both hard goods and information goods. For
information goods, content servers support a "pay-per-page" mechanism,
where customers can purchase access to a Web page or collection of
pages. The access can be time-limited subscriptions.
This approach to payment has several advantages, including:
* Support for existing Web browsers: no modifications to HTTP are
required.
* Clean division of labor: authentication and payment complexity can
be isolated from the merchant and content servers.
* Reduced fraud risk: merchants do not have access to the user
payment credentials.
* A modular architecture which supports multiple authentication
technologies, and will support future technologies as they emerge.
The system is described in more detail in other pages:
* Payment and Access URLs
* Authentication Methods
* Payment Processing
* References
Do you have any suggestions, comments, or questions? Please send us
your feedback.
_________________________________________________________________
OMI Home Copyright © 1994 Open Market, Inc. All Rights Reserved.