Patent ID: 8170959

Claim:
A computer-implemented method comprising: registering an intermediary with a postage vendor; authorizing the intermediary to access shipping APIs from a computer implemented shipping API system; providing shipping information on a user interface to a user through the intermediary; receiving by the intermediary a request from the user for a shipping label through the user interface; delivering the request from the intermediary to the computer-implemented shipping API system through the shipping APIs; determining by the computer-implemented shipping API system a postage rate for the shipping label; delivering the request and the postage rate from the computer-implemented shipping API system to the postage vendor; debiting by the postage vendor of a prepaid account having funds supplied by the user in at least the amount of the postage rate; delivering postage indicia from the postage vendor to the computer-implemented shipping API system; generating by the computer-implemented shipping API system the shipping label; and delivering the shipping label from the computer-implemented shipping API system to the intermediary and from the intermediary to the user; wherein the intermediary, user, computer-implemented shipping API system, and postage vendor are each one of independent parties and interfaces relative to one another.