CYCH news
Compaq to Include CyberCash Services in E-commerce Solutions; CyberCash Founder and Chairman Calls Simplicity Key to Success of E-commerce in Keynote Address At Comdex
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 21, 1999--
Customer Demand Drives Compaq Inclusion of CyberCash Services E-commerce Offerings;
Bill Melton Says Simplicity of Use by Consumers and Merchants Critical to Future of
E-commerce
CyberCash, Inc., (Nasdaq: CYCH), the world leader in e-commerce technologies and
services, announced today that Compaq Computer Corp (NYSE: CPQ) plans to include
CyberCash electronic payment solutions across current and future e-commerce offerings by
the Houston-based company.
Compaq's recent aggressive move into the e-commerce market has included partnership
agreements with INTERSHOP, Microsoft, Oracle and INEX, all of which offer CyberCash
services for real-time payments. CyberCash and Compaq say they are committed to working
together in the future to combine their technologies and expertise to deliver the most
complete e-commerce solutions for both the NT and Compaq Tru64 Unix platforms.
The success of one of these initiatives has already led to the creation of Compaq's
ActiveAnswers(TM) for implementing CyberCash services with Microsoft Site Server 3.0,
Commerce Edition. Compaq ActiveAnswers provides over 25,000 members of Compaq's VAR
community and end-customers with online tools and technical information to plan, deploy
and operate e-commerce solutions. (http://www.compaq.com/activeanswers)
"CyberCash is clearly recognized as the market leader with a dominant position in
payment technologies and other e-commerce services for merchants," said Mark Linesch,
director of Compaq Internet & E-Commerce Solutions Business Unit. "Our customers have
indicated that CyberCash's services are an essential part of our total commerce solution
offerings," Linesch said.
Today's announcement comes as CyberCash founder and chairman Bill Melton presented a
keynote address at Comdex Spring '99 at the Arie Crown Theater in Chicago.
In his address, Melton said simplicity has defined commerce throughout history, and it
also will play an important role in the success of electronic commerce. Simplicity, he
argued, often leads to ubiquity.
"When you pave the way with simplicity for consumers and merchants, success can easily
follow," Melton said.
Melton, who founded VeriFone before starting CyberCash in 1995, also told the audience
that support for transactions must rely on a comprehensive platform that accommodates all
parties in an e-commerce transaction, banks and portals, as well as merchants and
consumers. Relying on partnerships with companies such as Compaq, Microsoft, IBM, Oracle,
Concentric, and others, Melton said CyberCash is working to provide merchants with the
e-commerce support they require. In the end, he said many of these services mirror
operations currently performed by retail merchants in the physical world.
"To some extent, e-commerce represents not so much a new paradigm as simply a shift of
focus from the boundaries of geography to the boundaries of attention." he said.
Finally, Melton told the Comdex audience that the primary battle on the Internet will
be a "war for attention." Melton said that with offerings such as CyberCash's
InstaBuy(TM) service, everything in the world is just one click away. But he added that
"informational white noise" can make it difficult to determine to whom consumers should
pay attention.
While Melton says portals enjoy the advantage of being the "Tyrannosaurus Rex of the
Web today," he said that affinity groups, groups of web users with similar interests,
will play a much more important role in the future.
"It is these affinity-group members who have the highest 'recommendation power'
-higher than any newspaper ad...higher than any TV or radio spot...higher than any pop-up
ad on a Web site. We will see...we probably are seeing...the fragmentation of Internet
users into a myriad of affinity groups," Melton said.
"And, doubtless, we will see merchants and manufacturers following these--the
stickiest of eyeballs, if you will--and catering to their transactions," he said.
About CyberCash, Inc.
CyberCash is the world leader in secure, convenient payment technologies and services,
enabling e-commerce across the entire market spectrum from electronic retailing
environments to the Internet. CyberCash provides a complete line of software products and
services allowing merchants, billers, financial institutions and consumers to conduct
secure transactions using the broadest array of popular payment forms. Credit, debit,
purchase cards, cash, checks, smart cards and alternative payment types (e.g., "frequent
buyer" or loyalty programs) are all supported by CyberCash payment solutions. Leading
brands of CyberCash include ICVERIFY(R), PCVERIFY(TM), CashRegister, NetVERIFY(TM),
PayNow(TM), and InstaBuy(TM). www.cybercash.com
About Compaq Computer Corp.
Compaq Computer Corporation, a Fortune Global 100 company, is the second largest
computer company in the world and the largest global supplier of computer systems. Compaq
develops and markets hardware, software, solutions, and services, including
industry-leading enterprise computing solutions, fault-tolerant business-critical
solutions, networking and communication products, commercial desktop and portable
products, and consumer PCs. The company is an industry leader in environmentally friendly
programs and business practices. Compaq products are sold and supported in more than 100
countries through a network of authorized Compaq marketing partners. Customer support and
information about Compaq and its products are available at compaq.com. Compaq
ActiveAnswers can be accessed at compaq.com.
CONTACT: CyberCash, Inc., Chicago
Tom Calcagni, 703/715-7837
tcalcagni@cybercash.com
or
Ruder-Finn, New York
Adam Sohn, 212/593-5834
sohna@ruderfinn.com
10:04 EDT APRIL 21, 1999
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