Another feature available to MyNURIT users is Lipman's new Interactive Training Tool. NURIT resellers can now use the Web to obtain immediate, hands-on training for Lipman's most popular POS solutions. The NURIT 3020 Countertop Payment Solution and the NURIT 2059i Integrated Transaction Register are the first of many planned additions to the Interactive Training Tool. Other popular Lipman products, including the NURIT 2085 Card Payment Terminal and NURIT 8000 Wireless Palmtop Solution, will be available online in the coming weeks.

   "With Bill Me Later, merchants can better meet the demands of today's online shoppers for greater payment security, convenience and choice," said CyberSource Vice President, Steve Klebe. "Most new payment options are introduced as separate technologies requiring significant implementation and maintenance resources. With this alliance, merchants gain access to Bill Me Later through their existing relationship with CyberSource." Bill Me Later eliminates the need for a credit card. Customers receive instant purchase approval during the checkout process without providing an account number or needing to complete a lengthy application process. A monthly bill aggregates all purchases made at Bill Me Later Merchants, allowing the consumer to finance the purchase or pay the balance in full at no charge. Merchants receive authorizations, settlements and reporting in a manner similar to credit card transactions.

   The newest version provides a full set of options for authentication and administration for financial institutions that issue credit and offline debit cards. These options range from simple passwords to smart cards to Arcot's own ArcotID Software Smart Card. TransFort 5.0 for Merchants is designed for use in both single and multi-merchant environments across all merchant channels.

   ATM owners who add these services to their ATMs can expect a 30% to 50% increase in revenue, according to Arcot. "Other providers release services one by one or require either hardware upgrades or entirely new ATMs," says Sam Jonas, President and CEO of Cash Resources, an independent ATM distributor. "Triton allows me to provide merchants three value-added services in one easy step without my customers having to buy a new ATM.

   Terms of the deal were not disclosed. This is the third significant acquisition for TransFirst since january 2001, when CEO, Thomas Rouse, unveiled a proactive market acquisition strategy as part of the company's strategic growth plan. BA Merchant Services, Inc. has provided merchant acquiring services through and to agent banks for more than 20 years.�With this acquisition, the TransFirst Agent Bank division services more than 520 banks with $6 billion in annual sales volume. TransFirst processes more than $8 billion in annual sales volume for more than 64,000 merchants.

   According to current estimates, the recognized purchase price is also expected to include approximately $17 million for acquisition-related costs As the company previously announced, PayPal will continue to operate as an independent brand. eBay's current payment service, eBay Payments by Billpoint, will complete the phase-out of its operations in the first half of 2003.

   Under the terms of the agreement, Vital will continue to serve as NPC's primary provider of dial POS authorization and capture processing services.