- From: Manu Sporny <msporny@digitalbazaar.com>
- Date: Fri, 14 Nov 2014 19:35:45 +0000
- To: David Ezell <David_E3@VERIFONE.com>
- CC: "public-webpayments-ig@w3.org" <public-webpayments-ig@w3.org>, "public-webpayments-comments@w3.org" <public-webpayments-comments@w3.org>
On 11/13/2014 02:54 PM, David Ezell wrote: > As I see it, there are two levels of API with which we are > concerned: > 1) Interfaces for the "payment agent"[2] - probably WebIDL defined > interfaces. I'm always concerned when this comes up because it has fantastic potential for vendor lock-in. For example, if we create the WebIDL interfaces in such a way that only the browser manufacturers can implement them, then we will fail for at least two reasons: 1. We will fail because the browser vendors may drag their feet to implement it, and more importantly 2. We will fail because it won't create a level playing field, it'll make it so that the browser vendors determine the payment landscape on the Web. WebIDL is a great way to hand an enormous amount of power over to the browser vendors. So, when we talk about WebIDL interfaces, we should build them in such a way as to avoid vendor lock-in. That is, any WebIDL we provide must be implementable in pure JavaScript w/o waiting on the browsers to implement. Just pointing out what should be a show-stopper for every payment company that isn't a browser vendor. > 2) RESTful web services for other as yet TBD goals. I think this is a better approach. RESTful web services coupled with WebIDL APIs that can be implemented in pure JavaScript. That removes many technical barriers to adoption and doesn't put this group in the position of waiting for any particular organization or industry to get off their keister and open themselves up to competition. > We need to generate some concrete ideas and get the ball rolling. Some concrete ideas: https://web-payments.org/specs/source/roadmap/ -- manu -- Manu Sporny (skype: msporny, twitter: manusporny, G+: +Manu Sporny) Founder/CEO - Digital Bazaar, Inc. blog: High-Stakes Credentials and Web Login http://manu.sporny.org/2014/identity-credentials/
Received on Friday, 14 November 2014 21:31:51 UTC