BitPass
Encyclopedia
Bitpass was an online payment system for digital content and services. Kurt Huang
was a co-founder; Doug Knopper was hired as CEO in November, 2005. Bitpass was a California corporation with headquarters in Silicon Valley
. It was founded in December, 2002 and partnered with major technology and financial services companies such as Microsoft
, PayPal
, the Royal Bank of Scotland
and First Data
.
On January 19, 2007 Bitpass announced that they were shutting down, and operations officially closed on January 26, 2007. No immediate reason for closure was given.
For the content buyer, Bitpass worked like a pre-paid telephone card: the buyer signed up for the service and put money into an account using a credit card or PayPal. This stored-value amount could be used to purchase digital content or services.
Transaction fees were paid by the content provider. For payments under $5, the charge was 15% of the price paid by the buyer (Bitpass Professional merchant account fee).
Kurt Huang
Kurt Huang is co-founder, president, and chief product officer of BitPass. He has a Computer Science degree from Harvard and an MD from Stanford.Named to the 2004 list of the world's 100 Top Young Innovators by MIT's Technology Review magazine....
was a co-founder; Doug Knopper was hired as CEO in November, 2005. Bitpass was a California corporation with headquarters in Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
. It was founded in December, 2002 and partnered with major technology and financial services companies such as Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
, PayPal
PayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
, the Royal Bank of Scotland
Royal Bank of Scotland
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is a British banking and insurance holding company in which the UK Government holds an 84% stake. This stake is held and managed through UK Financial Investments Limited, whose voting rights are limited to 75% in order for the bank to retain its listing on the...
and First Data
First Data
First Data Corporation is an American payment processing company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. First Data is a provider of electronic commerce and payment solutions...
.
On January 19, 2007 Bitpass announced that they were shutting down, and operations officially closed on January 26, 2007. No immediate reason for closure was given.
For the content buyer, Bitpass worked like a pre-paid telephone card: the buyer signed up for the service and put money into an account using a credit card or PayPal. This stored-value amount could be used to purchase digital content or services.
Transaction fees were paid by the content provider. For payments under $5, the charge was 15% of the price paid by the buyer (Bitpass Professional merchant account fee).
External links
- Bitpass site
- Misunderstanding Micropayments - article by cartoonist Scott McCloudScott McCloudScott McCloud is an American cartoonist and theorist on comics as a distinct literary and artistic medium...
about micropayments and Bitpass