Internet Entrepreneurs, The

The formation of Priceline

Suing the world's biggest software group does not daunt Walker. Indeed, if confidence is a prerequisite of the entrepreneur, he has it in spadefuls.

The day we met, he had just left the stage at an e-commerce conference in London where he told a stunned audience of mostly British would-be entrepreneurs to tear up their business plans: the Priceline model held the future of web commerce. It was a riveting performance. Walker, gesticulating wildly with a rapid-fire delivery, combined the religious fervor of a Billy Graham with the vision of an Arthur C. Clarke. Fact or fiction, there is no doubting Walker's conviction and passion - and these facets pepper all his conversations.

It is hardly surprising to discover that ...