The bank is the largest issuer of Visa cards in the US,
according to the Wall Street Journal. It argues that the on-line
payment service, which is due to be acquired by internet auction
giant eBay, is infringing two patents for “cardless payment
systems.”
The patents are similar. According to one of the extracts, First
USA Bank’s invention covers the following:
"A Credit Card holder's telephone number is
assigned to his or her credit card as an alias. The cardholder is
then required to choose a PIN for security purposes. The telephone
number is linked to the cardholder's credit card number via a
database. When the cardmember enters into a transaction with a
merchant, the card need not be present. The cardmember simply
provides his or her telephone number and then the PIN. This can be
done at any point of sale such as a store, catalog telephone order,
or over the internet. The telephone number and PIN are entered and
authorization is returned from the credit card company."
