Patent ID: 7644036

Claim:
A method comprising: receiving, by a payment service provider, a request to pay a payee on behalf of a payor utilizing a credit card account with a credit card issuer; determining, by the payment service provider responsive to the request, whether that payee will accept a payment fulfilling the request via a charge to the credit card account of the payor; processing, by the payment service provider, the request via a credit card network if it is determined that the payee will accept the payment fulfilling the request via a charge to the credit card account of the payor; and processing, by the payment service provider, the request via other than the credit card network if it is determined that the payee will not accept the payment fulfilling the request via a charge to the credit card account of the payor, wherein processing the request via other than the credit card network comprises: transmitting, to the credit card issuer via other than the credit card network, the account information identifying the credit card account of the payor and the payment information representing the payment fulfilling the request, wherein the credit card issuer includes a record of the payment to the payee in a credit card statement to the payor issued by the credit card issuer; and directing the payment fulfilling the request to the payee on behalf of the payor from a payment account other than the credit card account; wherein all of the above steps are performed by one or more computers associated with the payment service provider.