[citation needed] In 1996, Microsoft purchased the core software that formed the basis for the Commerce Server product line from e-Shop.

It helped to create an e-commerce solution or web site with high-performance, familiar tools designed to simplify setup, management, and administration tasks.

[3] Used extensively by a number of middle to large UK retailers, Commerce Server gained considerable traction in the early 2000s.

Commerce Server 2009, which became available on Microsoft's price list on 1 April 2009, introduced multichannel awareness into the product, a new default site (running in Microsoft's SharePoint product), including 30 new web parts and controls, and WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) editing experiences for business people and site designers.

[citation needed] These features were introduced through the new Commerce Foundation - an abstraction layer that unifies calling patterns of the core systems (see below) and allows for different presentation and business logic to be easily added and represented as 'selling channels'; and SharePoint Commerce Services which includes integration with Microsoft SharePoint - a new default site with 30 new web parts and controls pre-assembled.

[citation needed] The product still retains its core systems of Catalog, Inventory, Orders, Profiles, and Marketing.