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Technology Stocks : CustomTracks Corporation (CUST) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Tom Hua who wrote (2249)	9/8/1999 4:41:00 PM
From: Kip518	Respond to of 2514

Another nail in CUST's coffin or are they part of this grand alliance? (my bet - not) Tech, financial firms debut data transfer standard By Sandeep Junnarkar Staff Writer, CNET News.com September 8, 1999, 8:05 a.m. PT An alliance of blue-chip companies today released a universal format that it hopes will make it easier and more appealing for consumers and businesses to pay for goods and services over the Internet. The consortium, which includes executives from America Online, Microsoft, IBM, Compaq Computer, American Express, MasterCard, Visa, CyberCash, and a slew of other major computer and Internet firms, publicly released its Electronic Commerce Modeling Language (ECML). According to the consortium, ECML provides a simple set of guidelines for Web merchants that will enable digital wallet software from multiple vendors to automate the exchange of information between users and merchants. Digital wallet software allows consumers to store billing, shipping, and payment information and to use this information to automatically complete a merchant form online. Most Internet merchants use a variety of nonstandard forms, sometimes putting a crimp in a consumer's enthusiasm to complete a transaction. Indeed, most buyers have to enter their name, address, credit card number, and expiration date at every site where they want to make a purchase. According to research firm Jupiter Communications, 27 percent of consumers have abandoned items at the checkout line at a Web storefront because they found filling out forms too tedious a task. ECML also can be used with existing data privacy and security methods, including the SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) and SET (Secure Electronic Payments) protocols, according to the consortium. SSL is the most commonly used method to encrypt credit card transactions over the Net. SET is a format supported by Visa and MasterCard as a more secure method of payment. Online merchants can implement ECML without a license. The alliance said that ECML is the first in what will be a series of e-commerce standards initiatives.