Approximately 42 billion checks were written and collected in the United States in 2000. The vast majority of noncash transactions continue to be settled with paper checks, which despite gains in efficiency and speed, still require costly and time-consuming sorting and transportation. An...

Network externalities exist when the value of a good or service to a potential consumer increases with the number of other consumers using the same product. For a service characterized by network externalities, adoption and use can be below the socially optimal level because consumers or firms...