Shopping cart software is software used in e-commerce

Electronic commerce

Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce, eCommerce or e-comm, refers to the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks. However, the term may refer to more than just buying and selling products online...

 to assist people making purchases online, analogous to the American English

American English

American English is a set of dialects of the English language used mostly in the United States. Approximately two-thirds of the world's native speakers of English live in the United States....

 term 'shopping cart

Shopping cart

A shopping cart is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the check-out counter during shopping...

'. In British English

British English

British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...

 it is generally known as a shopping basket, almost exclusively shortened on websites to 'basket'.

The software allows online shop

Online shop

Online shopping is the process whereby consumers directly buy goods or services from a seller in real-time, without an intermediary service, over the Internet. It is a form of electronic commerce...

ping customers to accumulate a list of items for purchase, described metaphorically as "placing items in the shopping cart". Upon checkout, the software typically calculates a total for the order, including shipping and handling (i.e. postage and packing) charges and the associated taxes, as applicable.

History and Definitions

The development of web shop systems took place directly after the Internet or the World Wide Web had become a mass medium. This was a result of the launch of the browser Mosaic in 1993 and Netscape in 1994. It created an environment in which web shops were possible. The Internet and WWW therefore acted as the key infrastructure developments that contributed to the rapid diffusion of the e-commerce. E-commerce (as a subset of e-business) describes all computer-aided business transactions. In 1998 a total of 11 e-business models were observed, one of which was the e-shop business model for a B2C business - also called the ‘’online shop‘’. The two terms ‘’online shop‘’ and "electronic‘’ or ‘’e-shop‘’ are used synonymously. The term ‘’online shopping‘’ was invented much earlier in 1984; in example for TV based systems. In these days, the term already referred to the B2C transactional business model. In order to enable ‘’online shopping‘’ a software system is needed. Since ‘’online shopping‘’, in the context of the B2C business model, became broadly available to the end consumer, WWW-based ‘’online shops‘’ evolved. For online shopping systems in this context the narrower term ‘’web shop‘’ is used. No term has become solidly established for a B2C e-commerce software system. Whereas in the German-speaking region terms such as ‘’web shop software‘’ or ‘’online shop software‘’ are used, the term ‘’shopping cart software‘’ has become established in the USA.

Licensed vs. Hosted Shopping Carts

Shopping cart software can be generally categorized into two main categories.

• Licensed software: The software is downloaded and then installed on a Web server. This is most often associated with a one-time fee, although there are many free products available as well. The main advantages of this option are that the merchant owns a license and therefore can host it on any Web server that meets the server requirements, and that the source code can often be accessed and edited to customize the application.

PCI Compliance

The PCI security standards are a blanket of regulations set in place to safeguard payment account data security. The council that develops and monitors these regulations is composed of the leading providers in the payment industry: American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB International, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa Inc. Inc. International. Essentially, they define the best practices for storing, transmitting, and handling of sensitive information over the internet.

Shopping Cart Software providers are responsible for any liability that may occur as a result of non-compliance to VISA regulations. For this reason business owners and online merchants must use only VISA Certified Shopping Cart Software providers as listed on Visa's Global List of PCI DSS Validated Service Providers.

See also

• Comparison of shopping cart software
  Comparison of Shopping Cart Software
  The following is a comparison of the features of various shopping cart software packages available. Some of the shopping cart software packages are extensible through a third-party application. As such, the features listed below may not encompass all possible features for a given shopping cart...
  
  
• Shopping cart
  Shopping cart
  A shopping cart is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the check-out counter during shopping...
  
  
• Credit card
  Credit card
  A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services...
  
  
• Online shopping