Tech Bytes: Open Market Upgrades Payments Software

Internet commerce pioneer Open Market Inc. announced the latest version of its Transact software, which includes new flexibility for accepting various forms of electronic payments.

The software, Transact 4, is an update of a product dating back to 1995. It forms the technical backbone of such high-profile Web sites as SegaSoft's Heat.net, Cnet's BuyDirect.com, and Time Inc.'s Pathfinder.

About 30 companies, including AT&T Corp., NTT of Japan, British Telecom, First Union Corp., and Barclays Bank use Transact to support customers doing business on the Internet.

A new payment API-application programming interface-can accommodate micro-transactions, credit card fraud prevention, switch cards (payment cards popular in Britain and Europe), and the credit card associations' Secure Electronic Transactions protocol.

Transact already supports credit cards, store-branded cards, debit cards, procurement cards, and subscriptions.

"Transact 4 is the culmination of a four-year mission to address the business-operations side of Internet commerce with a comprehensive enterprise application software product," said Open Market president and chief executive officer Gary Eichhorn. "We are the only company with a product that answers the question now being asked by companies of all sizes around the globe: 'How do I turn my great Web site and the buyers it's attracting into a business?'"

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