Abstract: To electronically present bills and request payment of presented bills, billing information representing a bill of a biller for a payee, and an associated selectable payment indicator having a first linking function, are received from a first network site associated with a bill presentment entity via a first communications link over a communications network. The received billing information and payment indicator are displayed. An input representing a selection of the displayed payment indicator is received. Based on the receipt of this input, the first linking function is activated to establish a second communications link over the communications network to a second network site, different that the first network site, associated with a bill payment entity, and to transmit a request to pay the represented bill on behalf of the payee to the second network site via the second communications link.

Abstract: Bill information is electronically presented to a user via a wide-area communications network. The wide-area communications network has multiple different network sites, including a first network site associated with a first bill information presentment entity, a second network site associated with a first user entity, and a third network site associated with a second bill information presentment entity. First information for authenticating the first user entity is received by the first bill information presentment entity. The first user entity is authenticated to the third network site based on this received first authentication information. First bill information, which represents a first bill of a first biller for the first user entity, is accessed at the third network site based on the authentication of the first user entity to this site. The accessed first bill information is transmitted from the first network site to the second network site, for presentation to the first user entity.

Abstract: An electronic bill presentment system includes network, a central network station, and a plurality of user and biller network stations. Each of the user stations is associated with a respective one of a plurality of users and is operable to transmit first requests for bills via the network. The central network station receives the transmitted first requests and transmits, responsive thereto, bill availability information via the network. The user stations receive the transmitted bill availability information and are operable to transmit second requests for bills via the network. Each of the biller stations is associated with a respective one of the plurality of billers. The biller stations receive the transmitted second requests and transmit, responsive thereto, the requested bills via the network.

Abstract: A method is provided for centrally tracking transactions in an electronic billing system. The system includes multiple different billing entities, multiple different financial institute entities and multiple different user entities. Each of the multiple different billing entities is associated with a respective portion of the multiple different user entities and each of the multiple different financial institute entities is associated with a respective portion of the multiple different user entities. A message is received from any of the multiple different financial institute entities indicating a request from any of the multiple different user entities associated with the applicable financial institute entity to view billing information. The receipt of the request to view the billing information is logged in a database as first event information.

Abstract: A distributed data accessing technique is disclosed. The technique is realized by storing, at a first network station, information identifying data which is available at a second network station, the second network station being different than the first network station. A signal is generated at the first network station representing the information identifying the available data and linking information to the second network station. The signal is transmitted to a third network station, the third network station being different than the first and the second network stations. The transmitted linking information is operable at the third network station to establish a network link over which the identified available data is transmittable from the second network station to the third network station.