Network Commerce Files for Bankruptcy

An Internet company founded by a former Microsoft executive has filed for bankruptcy protection after mounting losses throughout its eight-year history.

Network Commerce Inc. once employed more than 650 people and had a stock market value of more than half a billion dollars. But by the beginning of this year, its work force had shrunk to 65 people, and it finished the second quarter with $1.6 million in cash.

The company filed Friday for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Network Commerce, formerly TechWave and ShopNow.com, was founded by former Microsoft executive Dwayne Walker. It started out building e-commerce storefronts, including BuySoftware.com and TryAndBuy.com.

Later it moved into payment-processing software and business-to-business electronic commerce, then changed into a registry for domain names and an Internet hosting company.

Seattle-based Network Commerce was removed from the Nasdaq Stock Market in August 2001 after the stock traded below $1 for months. Its shares, now traded on over-the-counter bulletin board markets, closed Friday at 55 cents.