Abstract: An e-commerce payment solution that enables individuals and low-volume merchants to conduct e-commerce with established electronic payment vehicles, such as credit cards, without resort to permanent payment processing accounts is disclosed. Providing accounts for such small merchants with merchant-hosting entities that in turn are set up and in communication with a payment gateway entity that controls the processing, in concert with the novel payment processing and settlement architecture disclosed, permits many small merchants to effectively conduct online credit or debit transactions on a per transaction basis with little or no set-up costs.

Abstract: A high-speed tire for use during both wet and drying road surface conditions is disclosed. The tread groove depth increases from a minimum depth near each tread edge to a maximum depth near the mid-circumferential plane. Each of an outer group of tread elements has a ground-contacting surface area equal to at least about two square inches, and the net-to-gross ratio of the tread central zone is not greater than about 65 percent. Transverse grooves extend from the mid-circumferential plane to a tread edge at an angle relative to the mid-circumferential plane which is greater than about 75 degrees at the respective tread edge and which is less than about 40 degrees at the mid-circumferential plane. The widths of circumferential grooves progressively decrease as their respective distances from the mid-circumferential plane increase.