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Clearly, the dominant Internet payment method will be determined by consumer preference.
However, banks now have the opportunity to claim their stake in the cybermarket, which could total 10 percent of the gross international product by 2002, says Richard Crone, newly appointed vice president and general manager of Reston, Va.-based CyberCash's electronic check product.
Electronic commerce meets banking at the checking account, Crone says: "This is where the bank gives up the relationship and they give up their market."
Crone, a former consultant and banker, says his company has the products to help banks solidify their demand deposit relationships on the Internet. However, several other vendors claim their payment systems are superior.
Three on-line payment players have distinguished themselves among the hype: CyberCash, Digicash, with U.S. headquarters in New York, and First Virtual Holdings, of San Diego.
CyberCash says it soon will be offering a full array of Internet payment options for banks and consumers. Its electronic wallet will be filled with the same choices consumers have today when it comes to making payments: pay later, pay before or pay now, Crone says. The Options In the pay later mode, consumers mainly use credit cards. In the virtual world this is satisfied through CyberCash's Wallet, which was piloted at Wells Fargo Bank last year and made available commercially in January.
The credit card product includes client-side software that can be downloaded from the Internet; merchant server software and the Internet Gateway server software for banks.
Cybercash has distributed about 500,000 wallets and implemented the Gateway software with 19 credit card transaction-acquiring institutions. More than 20 merchants have signed on to use the system, including Boatmen's Bank, First Union, First National Bank of Omaha and Norwest Bank, of Minneapolis. Processors offering CyberCash products include CheckFree Corp., of Columbus, Ohio; National Data Corp., of Atlanta; First Data Corp., of Omaha, Neb.; NOVA Information Systems Inc. and MasterCard through its Automated Point-of-Sale Program.
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