PayIP.org

PayIP - An Internet-Native Payment Protocol

DRAFT SPECIFICATION FOR PUBLIC COMMENT

We propose PayIP, a protocol extension that integrates low-latency payments directly into web connections. By encoding authenticated “Value-Slice” messages (cryptographically signed payment proofs) alongside encrypted data streams (either in native QUIC frames or as HTTP payloads), PayIP enables endpoints to transmit data and settlement instructions together, eliminating the overhead and gatekeeper fees of application-layer processors.

Importantly, PayIP incorporates a transparent, protocol-defined royalty mechanism that incentivizes distribution software—browsers, runtime engines, and operating systems—to adopt the protocol, ensuring broad support without the monopolistic lock-in of current 2–3% card fees.

Clients establish a bidirectional payment channel during connection setup, then attach cryptographically verifiable micro- or macro-payments to data streams (e.g., within native QUIC frames or as HTTP request/response payloads). Settlement occurs off-chain through currency-agnostic rails (Lightning channels, stablecoin connectors, or Interledger hops), with on-chain finalization only when channels close, preserving scalability. PayIP supports deployment across all modern web protocols. It can be embedded natively in HTTP/3 (QUIC) streams for minimal latency or carried as a standard HTTP transport profile for universal compatibility with HTTP/1.1 and HTTP/2, even in the presence of intermediaries.

The result is an Internet-native payment layer that mirrors the end-to-end simplicity of IP itself: users transact with one click, merchants receive funds in seconds, and intermediaries are optional rather than required.

Download PayIP whitepaper

Version History:
- v0.20 (October 27, 2025): Introduced a co-equal HTTP Transport Profile for compatibility with all HTTP versions.
- v0.14 (October 19, 2025): Added collateral guarantees and anti-collusion rules for royalty distribution.
- v0.13 (October 16, 2025): Initial draft specification published on PayIP.org.

PayIP is an open protocol. This specification is published to establish prior art. Comments and feedback welcome at [email protected].The PayIP specification is licensed under CC BY 4.0 (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International), MIT License, or Apache License 2.0 — at the implementer’s choice.