Amazon introduced its one-click purchasing system and filed the related patent in 1997. The system allowed registered customers to buy without repeatedly entering shipping and payment details.
The technology was associated with Amazon engineer Peri Hartman and became one of the company’s most recognizable checkout innovations. Amazon later licensed the one-click technology to Apple, which used it in digital purchases and helped make the term familiar beyond retail websites.
The patent was controversial because critics argued that the underlying idea was simple and should not have received broad protection. It expired in the United States in September 2017. One-click purchasing is not the same as an express checkout button offered by every retailer; the historical reference specifically concerns Amazon’s patented system.