Educational content based on public sources. Not legal, customs, or financial advice. Consult licensed counsel for compliance decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Last updated: April 24, 2026
Is DigitalContinuity.ai the same as SmarterTariff?
Yes. DigitalContinuity.ai and SmarterTariff.com are two front doors to one product, not two products. Same operation, same methodology, same company: Renew EcoMe LLC, sole member Christopher M. Edwards. SmarterTariff.com and SmarterTariff.ai are the product surface where a checkout is assessed and the Agentic Commerce Readiness Score is produced. AgenticScoring.ca is the scoring mark itself, Canadian-domiciled, meaning the name of the measure rather than the scanner that produces it.
Read the EU AI Act transparency disclosureIs there a protocol that works universally for agentic commerce, and why is this approach different?
No agentic-commerce protocol has been universally adopted. Several shipped across 2025 and 2026, including OpenAI Agentic Commerce Protocol, Google Universal Commerce Protocol, PayPal Agent Ready, Amazon Buy for Me, and Shopify Agentic Storefronts. Each defines how an agent should transact inside one vendor ecosystem, they compete with each other, and no merchant can implement all of them. The deeper issue is that none of them changes the merchant's own checkout. An agent arriving through any protocol still has to operate the same rendered page, with the same unlabelled controls, the same focus order, and the same unreadable error states. That is why protocol adoption does not resolve the problem. Assessing the merchant's own checkout is protocol-agnostic and survives protocol churn, and the legal obligation under the European Accessibility Act and ADA Title III attaches to the merchant regardless of which protocol an agent uses.
Read the State of Agentic CommerceWhat exactly is the combination that makes this approach different?
Three things together, and it is the combination that matters rather than any one part. First, the claim is tied to a statutory obligation, the European Accessibility Act, WCAG 2.2 AA and ADA Title III, rather than to a vendor specification that can be deprecated. Second, the output is a compliance score, an auditable measure on a 0 to 95 scale, rather than a pass or fail opinion. Third, the screen-reader equivalence: an autonomous AI agent fails a checkout for the same structural reasons a screen reader does, so one assessment serves both. Connecting AI shopping to compliance in the abstract is not the claim, commentary on that existed earlier. The specific combination of statutory claim, compliance scoring, and screen-reader equivalence, delivered as a working product with a dated public record, is what is patent pending.
Contact for corporate developmentWhat is the patent status, and has an international application been filed?
The Agentic Commerce Readiness Scoring methodology is patent pending. The method is the subject of a multi-provisional United States estate and an international application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, filed 24 July 2026 and claiming priority from those provisionals, prepared and filed by outside IP counsel. A PCT application designates the treaty's contracting states, which preserves the option to enter the national phase in them; it is not a granted patent, it is not a filing in each individual country, and it is not a finding on patentability. The marking covers the scoring methodology specifically, not the platform generally. Until international publication the application's claims remain confidential, and their scope is knowable only under NDA. Full filing particulars, including the priority and national-phase dates, are provided to qualified corporate-development or legal counterparties under NDA rather than published.
Contact for corporate developmentDoes it work with Stripe, PayPal, Braintree, and merchant-of-record checkouts?
Yes. Stripe, PayPal, Braintree, Adyen and Square present their payment fields from their own domains, which is why a page-level scanner can report no issues while the payment step is exactly where a shopper or an agent gets stuck. The assessment covers the payment step as the shopper actually experiences it. Where a merchant of record sits between the shopper and the seller, the charge descriptor and the invoice path are part of the same buying flow and are assessed as part of it, because an unrecognisable charge descriptor produces the same outcome as a broken checkout: an abandoned or disputed purchase.
Learn about payment iframe accessibilityIs the scan invasive, and what data does it collect?
It is not invasive. The assessment runs from a public URL only. There is no integration, no code to install, no tag, no SDK, and no credentials are required or accepted. It reads a page the way a visitor would and honours robot exclusion signals. No shopper personal data is collected, which is deliberate: a compliance tool that required access to customer data would create the very risk it is meant to reduce. This privacy-first, zero-integration approach is also why an assessment can be run on any public storefront without a commercial relationship.
Read the Privacy PolicyWhy do other approaches to agent readiness break?
They break for the same reason this approach works. Page-level accessibility scanners stop at the page boundary and never reach the payment step, so they report clean on the part that fails. Accessibility overlays sit on top of a page and do not repair the underlying structure an agent reads. Vendor protocols solve transaction mechanics inside one ecosystem and leave the merchant's own rendered checkout untouched. Each of those is a partial answer to a fragmented problem. The structural fault is shared: if the page cannot be operated reliably by something that is not a sighted human with a mouse, it fails for assistive technology and for autonomous agents alike, and no protocol layered above it changes that.
How we scanWhat is web accessibility compliance?
Web accessibility compliance is the practice of ensuring websites and digital services meet published standards so people with disabilities can perceive, navigate, and interact with them. The primary standard is WCAG 2.2, published by the W3C. Compliance is evaluated against specific success criteria at Level A, AA, or AAA. Public guidance from ADA.gov and the W3C defines the applicable requirements.
Learn about payment iframe accessibilityWhat is WCAG?
WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The current version is WCAG 2.2, released in October 2023. It defines testable success criteria organized under four principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. Level AA conformance is the most commonly referenced benchmark in legislation and procurement requirements.
Read the WCAG 2.2 specificationWhat is ADA Title III?
ADA Title III is the section of the Americans with Disabilities Act that prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in places of public accommodation. Federal courts have increasingly held that commercial websites qualify as places of public accommodation. ADA.gov provides public guidance on web accessibility obligations. Consult a licensed attorney for specific legal applicability.
Read ADA.gov web accessibility guidanceWhat is the CBP refund portal?
The CBP refund portal refers to U.S. Customs and Border Protection resources for importers who overpaid duties. CBP administers drawback programs under 19 USC 1313, which allow recovery of certain duties paid on imported goods that are subsequently exported or destroyed. Eligibility depends on specific circumstances. Consult a licensed customs broker for drawback filings.
Learn about customs tariff classificationWhat is CUSMA?
CUSMA is the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, also known as USMCA in the United States and T-MEC in Mexico. It replaced NAFTA and entered into force on July 1, 2020. The agreement covers tariff preferences, rules of origin, digital trade, labor, and environmental provisions. Article 34.7 requires a mandatory joint review within six years of entry into force.
Learn about the CUSMA 2026 reviewWhat is HTS classification?
HTS classification is the process of assigning Harmonized Tariff Schedule codes to imported goods to determine applicable duty rates. The HTSUS is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) and administered by CBP. Each 10-digit HTS code maps to a specific duty rate, trade agreement eligibility, and regulatory requirement. Correct classification is the legal responsibility of the importer of record.
Learn about customs tariff classificationWhat is payment iframe accessibility?
Payment iframe accessibility refers to the degree to which embedded payment forms conform to WCAG 2.2 success criteria. Payment iframes present unique testing challenges because cross-origin security prevents parent-page scripts from inspecting iframe content. Key criteria include keyboard operability (2.1.1), name/role/value (4.1.2), error identification (3.3.1), and focus visibility (2.4.7).
Learn about payment iframe accessibilityIs my checkout WCAG compliant?
WCAG compliance of a checkout flow depends on conformance to specific success criteria across all components, including payment iframes, form fields, error messages, and navigation elements. Automated scanning can detect many common violations, but full conformance assessment may require manual testing with assistive technologies. A free scan can surface accessibility signals in your checkout.
Run a free accessibility scanWhat is agentic commerce readiness?
Agentic commerce readiness measures whether a checkout surface can be navigated and completed by autonomous AI shopping agents. Public records from Shopify, Google, and OpenAI indicate that AI agents interact with checkout flows using the same interfaces as screen readers: DOM parsing, ARIA attributes, and keyboard navigation. Checkouts that pass WCAG 2.2 criteria are generally more agent-readable.
Learn about agentic commerceWhat does SmarterTariff do?
SmarterTariff is a compliance scanning platform operated by Renew EcoMe LLC. It evaluates websites across supply chain transparency, checkout accessibility, AI agent readiness, and domestic sourcing signals. The platform uses automated browser-based scanning to detect compliance signals and generates reports with remediation guidance. It does not provide legal advice or regulatory determinations.
Read the SmarterTariff storyHow does the scanner work?
The scanner uses headless browser technology to load and interact with live web pages, evaluating them against published standards including WCAG 2.2 and structured data requirements. It checks payment forms, navigation elements, ARIA attributes, and supply chain signals. Results are returned in seconds. The scanning methodology is documented publicly.
Read how we scanIs SmarterTariff giving legal advice?
No. SmarterTariff does not provide legal, customs, tax, or financial advice. All scan results are informational signals based on automated evaluation against published public standards. SmarterTariff and Renew EcoMe LLC are not law firms, customs brokers, or licensed advisors. Compliance determinations must be made by qualified professionals licensed in your jurisdiction.
Read the full disclaimerIs this legal advice?
No. All content on SmarterTariff, including scan results, educational articles, and FAQ answers, is provided for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing on this platform constitutes legal, customs, tax, or financial advice. Always consult a licensed attorney, customs broker, or compliance professional before making business decisions based on information presented here.
Read the full disclaimerWho determines compliance?
Compliance determinations are made by regulatory authorities, courts, and qualified professionals licensed in the relevant jurisdiction. For web accessibility, enforcement varies by jurisdiction (DOJ for ADA, EU member states for EAA). For customs, CBP administers tariff classification and duty assessment. SmarterTariff surfaces signals; it does not make compliance determinations.
CBP tariff classification overviewWhat should I do with scan results?
Scan results identify potential compliance signals and areas for review. They are not compliance certifications. Use results as a starting point for discussion with qualified professionals: a web accessibility consultant for WCAG findings, a licensed customs broker for tariff signals, or legal counsel for regulatory questions. Remediation decisions should involve professional guidance.
Run a free scanExplore our educational resources for more detail.
Disclaimer: This page is provided for educational and informational purposes only, based on publicly available government and standards-body sources. Nothing on this page constitutes legal, customs, tax, or financial advice. SmarterTariff and Renew EcoMe LLC are not law firms, customs brokers, or licensed advisors. Regulatory interpretation and compliance determinations must be made by qualified professionals licensed in your jurisdiction. Always consult a licensed attorney, customs broker, or compliance professional before making business decisions based on the information presented here.